Love Story
by mangoliner
Summary: Mitchie Torres moves from quiet California to bustling New York City. At first she hates it, but then she meets the irresistibly charming Alex Russo and her former hate begins to shift to something that even she does not understand.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I was taking the bus home from work and **_**Love Story**_** started playing. Then like suddenly this story popped in my head. I dunno, so I had the mad urge to just write it down before I forgot about it. XD So that's why it's just before midnight I'm starting this… so I apologize in advance for any grammatical errors. Haha.**

**Ohhhh yeaahh….and it's in Mitchie's POV. Lol just so you know.**

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_We were both young when I first saw you_

_I close my eyes_

_And the flashback starts_

_I'm standing there_

_On a balcony in summer air_

- Taylor Swift

The first thing I noticed was the heat.

It was swelteringly hot outside. And I was in New York. It wasn't supposed to be this hot in New York. Maybe in Florida or Texas. But not New York.

But somehow, America's worst heat wave in a decade had settled itself on the Big Apple. Right when I was moving to the city.

Perfect. That's what I call a "Welcome" present.

I sighed.

This summer was supposed to be great. So far it was a hot mess.

"Mitchie can you grab that last box?" My dad called from the living room where he was unloading a box labelled 'Family Photos.'

"Um yeah," I responded. I walked to the driveway and pulled the last box from the rented moving van.

It was labelled 'Mitchie's Stuff' in black marker with my handwriting. I could only assume my dad had wanted to give me the privacy of carrying my own stuff in. He and my mom knew this was the box were my songs were stored.

I carried the box up to my new room. It was bigger than the one I had at our last house. Or maybe it just looked that way since at the moment the only furniture in it was a single desk and chair. The decoration consisting of filled cardboard boxes piled on top of each other.

I felt a heat-filled breeze run through the room. I settled the box on my one chair and walked to the source. I had a balcony in my room which was where the heat was coming from. My mom had opened it in a vain attempt to cool the house before the air-conditioning was up and running.

I stood on the balcony and felt the heat surround me even more. If that was possible. God, the heat was unbearable.

Everything just felt so different. Even though I was in a quiet New York suburb I could still feel the bustle of New York and the face-paced nature of the city. Such a contrast to calm California.

Which made me realize just how much I missed home back in California. California was hot too; I'm not going to deny that. But at least there I was comfortable. Here I was a stranger at best and an outcast at worst. I was just sixteen. I shouldn't be here in this freakishly hot city alone. I should be with my friends. I should be having fun.

Instead, I was in a huge city. I didn't know anyone. And not only was I bored beyond what I thought was humanly possible, but I was lonely.

A gust of hot hair blew into my face. It must have been saying, "Welcome to New York Mitchie."

--

At my parents' suggestion I took a look around the neighbourhood. When I walked into the street, all I noticed where the mini-mansions that lay along the road. It was then that I took a good look at my new house. I had barely even glanced at it when we first arrived. By my previous standard's, it was huge. I mean, it wasn't gigantic or anything. But definitely bigger than my last house.

When my dad said that he was getting a much better job in New York, he wasn't kidding. We could have never afforded this house back in California.

I already knew where I was going. From the view on my balcony, I could just see the fringes of a neighbourhood park that lay on the other side of the fence that outlined my backyard. It would be a good place for some peace and quiet. A good place to think.

I arrived at the park within a few minutes. It took my breath away. It literally looked like a scene from a postcard. I sat on a bench and just absorbed my surroundings.

Then I heard two voices.

"Alex!" A female voice called. "You have to leave now!" She said it as if it were a matter of life or death.

"Okay, okay." Another female voice said who I assumed was this 'Alex'.

When I heard it though, something in my head 'clicked'. I turned my head to try and find it. I looked everywhere, but I couldn't find it. The voice…it was just…so intriguing. That's the best word I can use to describe it. I bet this Alex person was the same.

"_I must get home before parents get past; take me home lightning-fast!_" The second female voice quickly said. And then I heard a soft pop.

I heard a dramatic sigh from the first voice. "That was close." The voice said it to no one in particular.

"I need to sit down." The first voice was getting closer. But where was the second voice?

I turned around and saw a girl rubbing her temple making her way to the bench where I was sitting. I don't think she noticed me at all.

"Too close," she mumbled as she sat. I looked at her.

My first thought is that she's dressed rather oddly. I've never seen anything like her clothes before. But I don't want to judge.

It was then that she noticed me. "Oh, I'm sorry." She said quickly. "Is this your bench?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh of course this isn't _your_ bench. I meant am I taking someone's seat?" I shook my head. "Oh okay. Then do you mind if I sit here with you? My feet are killing me." She started down at her feet and her face looked like she was in pain.

I nodded.

"I'm Harper by the way." She held out her right hand as if to shake it with mine.

"Mitchie," I said and shook it.

"Well Mitchie," Harper said smiling brightly. "I haven't seen you around here before."

"Oh that's because I just moved here from California." I say quietly.

"California, huh? That's so cool." She looks down at her feet and her face scrunches up as if her feet are in pain again. "I'm going to kill Alex," she mumbles quietly.

"Sorry, what?" I say not quiet catching the last part.

Her face shoots up and her cheeks blush slightly as if she realized she just said the last bit. "Oh, um, nothing." She pauses for a second. "So, um, Mitchie, have you made any friends yet…" It's a personal question, but I think she's just trying to change the subject quickly. So I answer.

"Not really," I say. "I just moved into my house today. I've been staying at a hotel for the past week while the old occupants of my house were leaving, so I haven't met many people yet."

"Oh…" She trails off. Suddenly she turns to me and has a big smile on her face. "You know what? You should come to my party."

"Your what?"

"My party. I'm throwing a party Friday at my place. It has a theme, of course, but I'm sure you could find a suitable dress or whatever in time."

I give her an odd look. I mean, it's a nice gesture, but I hardly know this girl.

"Come on," she says. "You're new, and this party will be a great way for you to meet new New Yorkers." She stifles a laugh. "Ha, get it? _New_ New Yorkers?"

I smile politely.

"Come on," She says again and bats her eyelashes.

I smile. Why not? I have nothing better to do anyway.

"Okay fine." I laugh. I can't believe I'm going to a stranger's house for a party.

"Great," She says grinning. We exchange cell phone numbers and she gives me her address and date and time of the party.

I glance at my watch and realize I better be getting home. I tell this to Harper and she gets up and hugs me goodbye.

I'm just about to leave the park when I remember something. I turn around and see Harper walking in the other direction. "Hey, Harper!" I call hoping she hears me. She turns around. "What's the theme of the party?"

She giggles. "It's a waltz."

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**Okay, so there's this button, I don't know if you've heard of it, but it's all the rage. You press it and then you can give your input on what you think of the story. :D**

**Amazing, huh? I think it's called reviewing or something. All the cool kids are doing it :)**

**Haha anyways the next Chapter will contain much more of Alex. Maybe even a meeting between Alex and Mitchie? :O**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N**: Thanks to all the cool kids who reviewed :) You guys are totally awesome and I love you all :D

I would have updated sooner, but I was lazy and I just got contacts :P My optometrist told me not to go on the computer while I was adjusting to them…so yeah. Haha, but I have my glasses on so let's get this story on :D

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_See the lights_

_See the party, the ball gowns_

_See you make your way through the crowd_

_And say hello, little did I know.._

- Taylor Swift

Harper convinced me to go to her party. I barely knew her but when I mentioned it to my parents they both loved the idea.

I guess they wanted me to make friends.

My mom was so into the idea that she bought me a dress for the occasion. A brand new freaking _designer_ dress. Now I know my dad must be making more money because back in California I didn't get designer anything, let alone whenever I needed clothes for a party. Or maybe the heat was just getting to my mom.

I was standing in front of my bedroom mirror. It reflected both me and my room in it – which I must say was looking much better now that I actually had furniture in it. I was wearing my new dress and my hair was curled. I looked pretty. For the first time in a long time I felt it.

"You look beautiful." I heard my dad's voice behind me. I turned, and sure enough, he was standing there in the doorway. A small smile on his face.

"The blue really brings out your eyes." He was referring to my baby blue knee-length dress. I did a little curtsey for him.

"Thanks, Dad." I replied and then turned back to my mirror.

"What time would you like me to drop you off?" My dad asked me. Harper told me the party started at six. But I wasn't stupid; I knew the party wouldn't actually start until seven.

I was kind of hoping the party would be full of people when I got there, so that no one would notice me when I was sitting alone.

"Um, how about seven-thirty?" Just to be on the safe side. My dad nodded.

"Listen," my dad walked up to me and turned me around so I faced him, "I know lots of boys are probably going to be all over you at this party." I rolled my eyes at him playfully. "But I just want you to remember to be careful around them."

"Dad, don't you trust me?"

He smiled. "Of course I trust you. I just don't trust _them_."

I laughed. He did too. But then he got serious again. "If there is a boy that you think is presentable and suitable for you. Then when you're ready, I want you to bring him here so I can meet him."

"Dad…" I started.

"No, Mitchie. I'm serious. Then I'll judge if he's appropriate for you."

I didn't know what to say. So I just shrugged. There wasn't much I could say to change my dad's mind anyways.

After our little "heart-to-heart" my dad told me to call him when I'm ready to go. We ended up leaving in time for me to get to the party at eight.

When we got close to the address I could hear music playing from what I assumed was Harper's house. From our brief meeting, I didn't actually assume Harper to be much of a people person. But I'm proven wrong as there are tons of teenagers all over the place.

Except it was all weird. Instead of the place looking like it was trashed and the kids were stoned, the house was in pretty good shape and the party-goers looked presentable. The boys were wearing expensive-looking suits and the girls nice dresses.

"I like the kids here in New York, they look so posh." My dad commented suddenly. I almost laughed. There must be an explanation for this. This must be some sort of act the teenagers at this party were playing. But I wasn't going to ruin my dad's good first impression of the adolescents of New York, so I left my thoughts to myself.

My dad parked the car in front of Harper's house. I said a quick good bye and walked across the lawn to the front door. I ignored the kids on the front lawn just as they did me.

I stood in front of the door for a few minutes not doing anything. Maybe I shouldn't do this. I mean, I didn't even really know Harper and she was the only person I "knew" at this party. I turned around to leave, but then I saw my dad reversing the car and pulling on to the street. He was leaving. I could call for him, but I didn't want to be a bother.

I turned back to the door.

It was now or never.

I knocked on the door softly. No one answered. Then I rang the door bell. A few minutes later Harper opened the door with a goofy smile on her face. "Mitchie! I'm so glad you came. Come in, come in."

And I stepped passed the threshold and into a house full of strangers.

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The party itself wasn't bad. There were cool lights and the music was pretty good – for a waltz. There was mostly classical music playing at first but every so often an R&B or Hip-hop song would play before Harper yelled at whoever had changed the music. At one point, hip-hop music was blaring from the speakers throughout the house for a full forty-five minutes before Harper realized it. During which, a lot of bumps and grinds were occurring.

Eventually though, Harper gave up and just let the R&B music play. Of course, every so often she would switch it back to a classical song in a futile attempt.

A few boys asked me to dance and I accepted to the offer a few times. But eventually, I would always end up in the corner of a room, sitting on a chair alone.

I looked at a clock located on one of the walls. It was _only_ eleven-thirty.

I glanced around the room. Huh, weird. It looked like there was less people in it. But why would the guests leave at eleven-thirty? Most house parties ended at what? Three in the morning?

I looked around the room again. Maybe I had imagined it because the room looked full again. The guests were bumping and grinding and gyrating and doing a bunch of other things my dad would have never expected from these kids from the way they were dressed. I swear the couple located in the corner opposite to mine wear having sex with their clothes on.

I laughed silently to myself and debated whether or not to tell my dad about the dancing and the…other events taking place at the party. I knew I wouldn't. But it was still funny to imagine his reaction.

I looked up. Weird. The room looked thinner again. What the heck was going on?

"If you're wondering where everyone went…" a voice said somewhere off. I couldn't quite see who was talking because a couple of horny-looking teens were currently dancing in my way. I tried to look around them. "…they're all downstairs." The voice continued. But I still couldn't see who owned it.

That voice. I had heard that voice. I _know_ I had. I just couldn't place it.

And then it hit me.

"Y-y-you're.." I began stuttering a bit. Since when did _I_ stutter?

"Alex Russo," the voice said finishing my poorly structured grammatical sentence and appearing suddenly by swiftly moving around the gyrating couple. The voice belonged to a teenage girl with dark hair and a smile on her face. She stuck her hand out for me to shake it.

My mouth opened slightly. Alex. _The_ Alex. The Alex I had heard Harper talking too that day at the park. The Alex that Harper was supposedly going to kill.

The Alex whose voice had mesmerized me, but then as quickly as I'd heard it, had disappeared.

I just started at her. She had an amused grin on her face.

Then I snapped out of it.

"I…I'm, um, Mitchie." I said quickly hoping to recover from my mental lapse. "Torres," I added when I realized I hadn't given my full name. I looked down at her hand which was still out. I hastily shook it.

"Hi, Um Mitchie…Torres." She joked.

I smiled and then took a good look at her. She wasn't wearing a dress. But she wasn't wearing a suit either. She was in black skinny jeans, a t-shirt, a fitted vest, and Converse shoes. Not exactly formal wear, considering this was a waltz themed party.

I laughed slightly. "What did Harper say when she saw you wearing that?" I only half-expecting her to answer.

She laughed herself. "Oh, she yelled at me for a bit. But she loves me too much to really care." I nodded as if I understood. "I don't do fancy ballroom dresses," she said explaining herself. "But I'm not a guy, so I don't do suits either. So I threw a bunch of stuff together and this," she motioned to her body, "was the result of it."

She sat down in the chair next to me. "That dress looks great on you though." She sounded like she meant it.

I blushed slightly. I don't know why.

"I, uh, got it for this party." I'd spoken so quietly, I was surprised she even heard what I'd said.

"Harper did say this was a waltz. So I played the part…" I trailed off. "But I did find that a little weird. I mean, this is a _house _party, not the prom. Why is everyone in expensive formal wear?" I really was curious.

"Oh," Alex laughed. "That's because these kids are loaded."

I must have looked confused because Alex continued to explain. "All these kids," she motioned around the room, "go to Tribeca Prep. That's where Harper and I go too. It's a private school where the upper class of New York dump their kids during the day."

"_Really_?" I said. Wow, I had never been in the presence of so many wealthy people before. I mean I had only really met one affluent person before and that had been Tess. Just being around Tess gave me chills – and she was only one person. Now I was surrounded by tons more.

It made me even more self-conscience. I looked down at my blue dress. Suddenly my new designer dress didn't seem as chic as it did when my mom first bought it.

"Yeah," she said rolling her eyes. "So these kids can afford to buy an $1000 dress and not worry about it getting puked on at a house party, because," she paused and imitated a valley girl, " 'like, I can always buy a new one.'"

I chuckled. Then something popped in my head. I said it before I could stop myself. "But _you_ go there. To that private school I mean. And you don't seem…superficial." I said the last word slowly as I realized what I just said. I could have slapped myself. I met this girl literally five minutes ago, and I'd already asked her a stupid personal question and basically told her that I think all her friends at school are shallow.

She smiled. "Wow, I meet your standards when it comes to superficiality. Awesome." She joked and then put her hand up exaggeratedly to give me a mock high-five. I couldn't help but give a small laugh. "But really," she said putting her hand down. "I'm not like these kids because I don't have the money that they do. My parents can barely afford the tuition to send one of us to that stupid school, yet somehow they scrape together the money to send my brothers and me there."

I didn't know what to say. She'd just told me something really personal. I thought back to my family's money problems. And then I remembered the big, new house we lived in now. Did those problems still exist?

"So, um, what school do you go to?" Alex asked changing the subject.

I thought about it. "I…don't know." Alex laughed. Really hard.

"You don't know?" Alex managed to say it between laughs. "What did you forget? Amnesia got your tongue?" She continued to laugh.

It wasn't that funny. Actually, it wasn't funny at all. I gave her a small glare, which quickly shut her up. "It's not like I can't remember. It's just I really don't know. I just moved here from California. My parents haven't enrolled me at any school yet."

Her mouth formed a small 'oh.' Then suddenly, her eyes widened as if she'd just realized something. "Y-you're Mitchie!" She said it almost in shock.

I gave her an odd look. "Yes, I believe I told you that earlier."

She shook her head. "No. I mean yeah, you did. But I mean no because you're Mitchie." I was still just as confused and I must have looked it. "Mitchie as in Harper's friend, Mitchie. The one she met like two days ago. She told me about you."

I nodded. I didn't see what the big deal was; obviously I was Harper's friend or I wouldn't be at this party. But she didn't press it any further, so I let it go.

"That changes my plans a little…" Alex said it so quietly I had to strain to hear it.

"What plans?"

She looked to me suddenly. Her eyes almost panicky like she'd been caught saying it. "Nothing…nothing." She shook her head.

It was weird. But Alex was only the second normal person I had met in New York, so I wasn't about to pressure her into telling me something that probably wasn't a big deal.

So I figured it was my turn to change the subject. "When time did you get here? I hadn't seen you at all until you introduced yourself."

She gave a devilish grin. "Oh, I got here _hours_ ago. I was just a little preoccupied…downstairs."

My eyebrows arched. Downstairs? That was where Alex had said all the party guests were mysteriously disappearing too. I looked up. Almost everyone who was in the room at the beginning of our conversation was gone. Basically, it was Alex, me, the gyrating couple who were sucking each other's faces, and two teenagers staring at the ceiling who looked really stoned.

"What's downstairs?"

"The real party. Not this waltz cover crap. Well, I mean to Harper, _this_," she motioned around the empty room, "is the 'real party.' But to her brother, and everyone else, the basement is where all the fun is at."

"The fun being?"

"The keg. The drugs. You know, the usual?"

I nodded. Oh right, the usual. I almost laughed out loud. I had been right with my first assumption when I thought these kids looked too good to be true. Because they were.

Alex continued. "Harper's college sophomore brother is controlling the party downstairs. Up until now, he's only been allowing a certain amount of people down there, in case their parents come, so they won't be suspicious and stuff. So people have been alternating up and downstairs. I guess by the looks of the empty room though, he just stopped caring."

"And you were down there the whole time?"

"Yupp." She smiled deviously. "And I think it's about time I got back." With that, she got up quickly, just leaving me there. I didn't know what to do. She literally just got up and left. She didn't even ask if I had wanted to come; so I just sat there. She would come back. She had too… Right?

It was to my intense relief when she did. I looked at the clock. She had only been gone for like three minutes, but I still sighed in relief.

Wait, relief? What? No, no, relief was the wrong word. Definitely the wrong word. I wouldn't have cared if she didn't come back. I wouldn't have. I wouldn't have. I _wouldn'_t have. It must just be because I didn't want to lose her as a friend. Yeah, that made sense. I mean, she was basically the only friend I had, not counting Harper. Yeah, that was it. It had to be.

Alex handed me a red plastic cup that I hadn't even realized was in her right hand. A similar cup was in her left. It smelled like alcohol.

"Um…" I stumbled a bit. "I, uh, don't drink." I was a good girl. Even in California, I was the one who watched my friends get drunk and then took care of them afterwards.

She shrugged at my morality. "Suit yourself." She poured the entire contents of 'my' cup into hers.

She slowly started sipping the drink as we continued our conversation.

--

Alex said the real party was downstairs. But she was wrong. It was in Harper's living room, where there was just the two of us. Granted every half-hour or so a couple would stumble in trying to find a place to make-out, spot us and then quickly leave. But for the most part, we were alone.

It was nice to talk to someone, even if I'd just met her and she was slightly drunk. It made me feel calm. Like it was a tranquility that I could depend on in the ambiguity that was New York. After talking to her for the last few hours, it felt like I'd known her for years.

"Favourite movie?" I asked giggling.

"Easy. _Saw_." She said it effortlessly, as if she didn't even have to think about it. She sipped her drink. "Favourite band?"

"Connect 3."

She made of a face of disgust. "Ew."

I chuckled. "Oh yeah, what's your favourite band then?" I challenged with a smile.

"Paramo – ." She hiccupped. I couldn't help but smile. "What you've never seen someone hiccup before?" She asked with a smirk. "Do they not have those in California?"

I just shook my head, still smiling. I just couldn't wipe my stupid grin off my face once I saw hers. I think she noticed. "Oh I get it," she continued. "It's my smile. They don't have _that_ in California."

She grinned at her own cockiness. "Well, you know, I have heard my smile is pretty awesome. You should consider yourself lucky that you're getting to see it. Ninety-nine percent of America never will. It really is quite sad."

"Is that so," I said it rather coolly but my grin was still evident. "Actually, I feel rather bad for the one percent that _does_ see it. Myself included."

Alex brought her hand to her heart in mock hurt. "Ouch, that hurts, Mitchie."

I just smiled innocently.

Then my ears strained, as I recognized the soulful beats of the music playing. For the first time since I had begun my conversation with Alex, I actually noticed the music.

"Ohmygosh." I squealed. "Connect 3 is playing!" I could barely contain my excitement. It was my favourite song: _When You Look Me In The Eyes_.

Alex rolled her eyes and gave me a look that clearly said 'Seriously?' Then she spoke. "Great…now I have to do this."

"Do what?"

"Ask you to dance." She made it sound so obvious. "I was going to wait until some decent music came on, but now I have to do it now."

I raised my eyebrow at her. She turned to me. "Let me guess…this is your favourite Connect 3 song, right?"

I nodded. How did she kno–

"Then I have to do this now." She nodded, mostly to herself. "Yup, I do."

She got up and stood in front of me. Her cocky smile on a few minutes ago was now replaced with a gentle one. She placed her right hand in front of me and gave a small bow. Then she flashed another gentle smile. "Mitchie Torres, may I have this dance?"

I looked up at her. I had never slow danced with a girl before. What would people think? But then I looked around and realized that no one was even in the room. I shrugged. Then I realized just how vulgar that must of looked, so I nodded sheepishly.

What could be the harm with dancing with her? Alex was just being nice. After all this was my favourite song. Maybe this was just some weird way New Yorkers welcomed newcomers…by dancing. It was a slightly awkward thought, so I shook it out of my head.

I slowly took her hand.

Alex gently raised me to my feet. Then her arms wrapped around my waist. I linked my hands around her neck. It was nice. Really nice actually. It felt freakishly natural. Bizarre, yet safe.

She gently swayed us to the beat. Then out of nowhere, she twirled me. I laughed, because I almost tripped over my heels. But she held onto me firmly, and I just ended up back in her arms. When I looked up, I saw her softly smiling.

"You're a klutz." She whispered into my ear.

I gave her a mock glare. "No you." Her smile grew bigger.

She brought me closer to her, so my head was resting on her shoulder. She was slightly taller than me, so my head and her shoulder were at just the right height for me to lean into her. For some reason I didn't mind as she closed the distance between us. Like I said, it felt…nice.

We continued to slow dance. She tried the twirl move a few more times, each time I became better at it, I must say. After the fourth attempt, I didn't even stumble. This caused me to smile brightly. She grinned back.

"You look beautiful." Alex stated suddenly. Then I felt her tighten her hold on my waist, as if she was afraid I would run away from her abrupt statement. My head was still on her shoulder, so she couldn't see my reaction and I couldn't see her face. Which was good, because I could feel my face flush. If I could see myself, I'm sure I would be a dark shade of red.

I realized that she had mirrored the words of my father earlier that evening. They were the same words, but said by two different people. I had a nagging feeling that they had two completely different meanings. I just couldn't place _what_ that meaning was.

"_When I hold you in my arms, I know that it's forever. I just got to let you know, I never want to let you go_." Alex whispered into my ear, instantly making me forget what I was thinking. She was singing softly, on key, to the Connect 3 song. She sounded beautiful.

I looked up, mesmerized at her voice, just as I was that day at the park. Slowly, she freed a hand off my waist and brought it to my chin, forcing me to gaze up. She looked me straight in the eye and I could see her chocolate orbs stare softly into mine. "When you look me in the eyes…everything's alright; when you're right here by my side. When you look me in the eyes, I catch a glimpse of Heaven. I find my Paradise, when you look me in the eyes." She was still in sync with the song, except this time she didn't sing it. She said it as if in conversation.

And the weird part was, I couldn't tell if she was saying the lyrics or saying it to me.

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**A/N**: I wanted to add some humour into this chapter, but clearly that attempt was a fail. =/ I dunnno, I wasn't really happy with this chapter. Err, buut I hope to make that up in the next chapter…

Okay, I'm sorry. I'll stop rambling now… lol.

Ohh…and reviews are always appreciated :)


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** My best friend and I went shopping today for seven consecutive hours. It was amazing :] So right now I'm still on my shopping high which consists of a slight hyperness and a lot of bubbliness...if those are even words haha. So I thought what the heck, why not update and hopefully transfer that to a computer screen XD

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My eyes were closed, shut tightly. But I could still see spots of red dotting the blackness of my closed eyes. This meant two things. One: The sun was up and glaring on my face. Two: That I had to get up. I wasn't particularly thrilled at both facts.

My head was pounding. What a perfect way to wake up, with a migraine. I slowly peeped through one eye. A swirl of colours reflected into my slightly opened pupil until I opened my other one and I could properly focus. I didn't recognize anything. At all. I was sort of used to that, after waking up in my new house for the last two days and not recognizing the furniture pattern or my bedroom arrangement. But this was different. I didn't recognize _anything_.

I was sleeping on a bed that wasn't my own. The walls were plastered with posters that weren't my own. The room was littered with clothes and magazines that weren't my own. All this led me to the candid conclusion that I was in a room that was definitely not my own. I looked down. I wasn't even in my own clothes.

I took a deep breath and tried to remember something – anything – that would lead to a realization as to why I was here. So far, no luck. It kind of just made my headache worse.

I took in my surroundings. The room was slightly messy, but also had a feel that it had recently been cleaned. It was as if the owner of the room had been in such a hurry to tidy the room that they had completely failed their objective. There was also a mid-sized window with the curtains held back; light was pouring through it.

I noticed a skewed vest lying lopsided on the desk chair. Oh, I remembered that vest. That was the vest Alex was wearing.

Then it all came rushing back.

The party. I was at a party last night. A fairly rambunctious party, even at California standards. Somewhere between one and two am the party downstairs had migrated to the main floor. During which time Alex had convinced me somehow to drink. Let me say now, I'm not a very good drunk. I mean, I'm seriously a lightweight. I think it only took one or two sips of her drink before I became woozy. I know I drank more but…it's kind of fuzzy right now. I guess I can ask Alex or Harper about the details later.

That still didn't answer why I was here though. Or even where I was for that matter.

I got off the bed to investigate further. I walked to the door, which I noticed was just slightly ajar. A thin sliver of dim light was coming from it compared to the beams of Sun from the window.

I could hear the muffled sounds from the hallway on the other side of the door. I peeked through the sliver of open space between the door and the doorway. I could just make out two figures. They were talking in hushed tones. I strained to hear them.

"Not again, Alex!" I heard a male voice hiss exasperatedly.

"It's not what it looks, Justin. Seriously. It's not." I instantly recognized this voice as Alex's. I guess the male voice belonged to...Justin?

"Ha! Right!" Justin slightly mocked still whispering. "She's just another girl, sleeping in your bed after you two have done things that I really don't want to know about. I swear, every weekend there's a new one." He paused and I saw him shake his head in frustration. "I can't keep covering for you Alex. Honestly, mom and dad are starting to pick things up…They're not going to buy 'Alex has a friend sleeping over' for much longer, especially when your 'friend' make extremely loud noises of…satisfaction."

Confused? So am I.

"Justin, look, I'm not asking you to cover for me. This time, I'm seriously telling the truth. Nothing. Happened."

Justin raised an eyebrow sceptically. "What? She didn't fall for your stupid Alex charm?"

Alex looked to her feet. "It's a little more complicated than that…" She paused and then looked back to the boy standing next to her. "So please just go tell mom and dad I have a friend over so we need to set an extra setting for breakfast."

Justin raised an eyebrow again, except this time he looked impressed. "You've never introduced a girl to mom and dad before. In fact, most of the girls usually leave right about now. What's so special about…" He trailed off not knowing the name.

"Mitchie." Alex finished for him. I gulped silently. "And that's none of your business. So can you just please go tell mom and dad?"

Justin rolled his eyes but nodded. He walked away silently while Alex made her way towards the door to the room I was in.

I quickly moved from the door and back to the bed where I had awoken from, throwing the covers over me. Hopefully it looked like I was still sleeping.

"I see you're up." Alex's voice carried through the room and to my ears. I turned to her. She was standing at the doorway with a small smile.

"Uh…yeah." Well my attempt to look like I was sleeping was a total failure.

"You had quite a night." Alex said making her way to the bed. I nodded. Alex mentioning the party yesterday just made my headache worse. I brought a hand to my head in an unsuccessful attempt to stop the throbbing pain. "Your head? Are you alright?" The girl asked sitting down next to me.

I shook my head. "I-I don't mix well with alcohol. I guess this is what I deserve, I shouldn't have been drinking last night."

She gave a small laugh. "Karma's a bitch ain't it?" I gave her a look. _She_ was the one who had given me the alcohol. She seemed to have read my thoughts. "Hey, you didn't _have_ to drink it. I was just offering." She smiled again.

I just shook my head. "So, uh, w-what happened last night? It's all kind of a blur to me…" I trailed off.

She cracked a big grin. "I'm surprised you don't remember. You became the life of the party." _Me_? Seriously? "You were dancing on tables and stuff and grinding with….people." She seemed a little uncomfortable at the thought. "Anyways, your parents called and asked what time you would be home, but you just kept rambling nonsense at them."

My parents? Oh God, I was so dead. "But luckily, I was there to save you. I took your cell from you and talked to your…I think it was your dad, and told him that you were just tired. Then I suggested that you spend the night at my house, which your dad surprisingly agreed too, so I could take care of you or whatever. So I drove you back to my place, which wasn't to hard since you kinda passed out after one of Harper's brother's friends was stupid enough to give you tequila. Then um, brought you too my room, and um," she blushed slightly, "I didn't want your dress to get ruined, so I took you out of it and put some pyjamas on for you. She paused and then stammered out quickly "ButIswearIdidn'tlookoranything. I just wanted you to sleep comfortably."

I was speechless. She did all that for me? "I can't believe your dad bought it. I mean, you sounded _really_ drunk." Alex said after a few silent moments.

I blushed. "Well my parents trust me. I've never done anything like that before. If you told my dad that I was tired, then he would believe you 100% since he knows I wouldn't let anyone but trusted friends touch me phone…"

She tilted her head slightly and smiled. "A good girl, huh? I've never had one of those before."

That confused me more. She continued. "Anyways, my mom's making breakfast, so we should get down there. Come on, I want you to meet my family." She grabbed my hand and dragged me out of her room.

--

The Russo's were pretty cool, I must say. They treated me as if I was their daughter, which was an incredibly kind act for strangers. It turned out that the Justin guy I had seen in the hall was Alex's older brother. It was funny, because he kept trying to impress me throughout breakfast with all these random facts about Californian plant life once he learned I was from there. I smiled politely during the whole thing even though I didn't have clue about what he was talking about; Alex looked really annoyed though.

Alex's younger brother Max was pretty amusing himself. He kept talking about really random things all through breakfast to which the entire family rolled their eyes too. But I didn't mind, I had never had siblings before, and I rather enjoyed the non-sensical ramblings of Max and the uninteresting facts Justin cared so much about.

Alex had a shift to cover at work so she couldn't drive me home. Justin offered though. So there I was, sitting in Justin's incredibly clean Ford while he fiddled with the radio.

I attempted to fill in the semi-awkward silence. "So, uh, why weren't you at the party last night?"

He almost laughed. "Harper threw the party…and me and Harper…just no." He shuddered slightly. "Besides, I was on a date with my Juliet." He smiled faintly as he pulled onto the road.

"You're Juliet?" I asked curiously.

His smile grew bigger. "My girlfriend. The most wonderful girlfriend I've ever had. We have love and commitment…things _Alex_ will never know." He said the last part almost spitefully.

I turned to him, confused.

"So then Alex must not have a boyfriend?" I asked trying to act casual.

Justin snorted. "No. No boyfriends for Alex. They're not her _preference_…if you know what I mean." Was he implying what I think he was? "She's not much a relationship person anyways. She's more of a 'I'll-keep-up-with-you-until-you-let-me-have-sex-with-you-and-then-I'll-dump-your-ass' kind of person."

I let his words settle in. "So she's a player?"

Justin nodded. "In every sense of the word." I couldn't believe it. Last night Alex was so sweet to me… how could that Alex be the same one Justin was describing?

"If you don't believe me, just think about last night. Obviously Alex tried to make a move on you." Justin's voice brought me out of my thoughts.

"Did she give you that sob story about our family in financial need?" It was more of a statement then a question.

I nodded slowly. She _had_ mentioned her family and money problems.

"She's trying to get into your pants. She uses that story every time. Girls fall for it instantly."

"W-wait. She's trying to get into my _what_?!"

"In your pants." He said without a second glance to me. "What I'm surprised about is that she hasn't done it already. I think you might be the only girl in New York to have ever resisted the Alex Charm"

"I-I" I couldn't seem the form the words. "…I'm not like that."

Justin looked at me with a sad smile. "They never are. That's what the worst about it is. They start questioning themselves, and then Alex just leaves."

I opened my mouth and closed it several times while trying to figure out what to say to that. "I'm sure Alex will respect that fact that I just want to be friends." I ended up saying confidently. Alex has been so sweet and considerate to me so far, if I didn't want to pursue _that_ kind of relationship, I was sure she would consent.

Justin snorted. "You seem like a nice girl. So I'm going to tell you this as a friend, and not as Alex's brother: Stay away from her."

I opened my mouth slightly. I was a little insulted.

He took his eyes off the road for a few seconds and turned to me. "Don't take it the wrong way; I just don't want you to get hurt. Alex just doesn't do good girls."

"So I've heard." I stated simply, remembering the conversation Alex and I had earlier that morning.

What was I getting myself _into_?

--

I decided the best thing to do was to ignore the advice Justin had given me. And that worked pretty well.

Harper, Alex, and I started hanging out almost everyday and it was great. I was even starting to think Justin was joking about Alex, because not once did she make a move on me or anyone else as far as I knew. It had almost been two weeks since I'd first met both Harper and Alex and I was beginning to see them as really good friends. That's how I liked it wanted it to stay. Just friends.

We were at the movies. After a pretty intense game of rock-paper-scissors to determine what film would be seen, to which Alex was the victor, we settled in our seats in _Night of the Halloween Sorority Party Disaster 5_. Honestly, how many of these movies were they going to make?

Alex, for some strange reason, had wanted to see a scary movie. She complained loudly in the lobby that no good horror films were playing, so she was forced to pick the campy _Sorority Party Disaster 5_. I didn't know what Alex was talking about. I had seen one _Sorority Party Disaster_ film before and it scared the crap out of me. Alex was talking casually about it like it was a _Spy Kids_ movie.

The lights dimmed and the pre-movie theatrical trailers started playing and I was fiddling in my seat. I really don't mix well with horror movies. Really. I was getting a little nervous.

Alex was sitting to my left. She raised an eyebrow at me. "Something the matter, Torres?"

I nodded dumbly. There was not point in denying that I was going to be scared, Alex was going to realize this when I started screaming my head off as soon as the movie started anyways.

"You're going to get scared, aren't you?" She grinned wickedly.

"This isn't funny, Alex!" I hissed as the women sitting in front of us 'shh'd' me and sent me a glare.

I felt hot breath on my neck and realized that Alex had bent down to whisper into my ear. "Oh, but it is. You know, if you get too scared, I'll be right here, to protect you." She said the last sentence slowly, as if savoring the sound.

I gulped. I glanced at Harper, who was sitting on Alex's other side, in an attempt to get help from whatever Alex was trying to pull; but Harper was blissfully ignoring us and staring contently at the screen while flicking the occasional popcorn in her mouth. I could still feel Alex's hot breath on my neck.

I turned to face Alex and our noses grazed for a second before I pulled away quickly. I wasn't aware of just _how_ close she was. Our faces were only inches apart. And…she was just staring at me. "Um…thanks." I took a deep breath. "I'll remember that if the movie gets too frightening for me.." I turned back to the screen. Oh please don't be too scary. Oh please, please_, please_!

Of course the movie scared the living daylights out of me, and we were only forty-five minutes in.

For the first twenty minutes or so, the movie hadn't been that bad. I had only jumped slightly out of my seat at some stupid scene when one of the Sorority girls yelled "BOO!" from behind a curtain. Really predictable, but I fell for it. I think I was literally the only one in the entire theater who did. Even Harper yawned when she saw it. Of course Alex giggled at me.

But now the movie had switched to full on suspense and gore. My eyes were tight shut behind my hands as they were covering my eyes while I heard another scream and the swooshing sound of an axe.

Then silence. I took this as a good sign that the killing or whatever was done and slowly opened my eyes and removed my hands. Wrong move. Suddenly an axe-wielding maniac was rushing at the camera and straight at me. I couldn't help but scream loudly, the shriek echoing off in the theater. My cheeks flushed instantly. The theater was quiet as I realized I had been the only one who screamed. Then I heard Alex laughing. Quite openly I might add.

I shoved her arm. This was no laughing matter.

"Hey!" She whispered into my ear. Then she softened. "Aw, come on. You have to admit, it's kind of funny watching you freak out over nothing." I glared at her.

She sighed, but did so with a smile. "Come on, you know I'm kidding. I promised to protect you, and I'm obviously doing a shitty job of that if you're screaming. So I'm going to get that to stop... even if it is pretty hilarious."

I shoved her again, but this time playfully. I felt the tips of my lips curve up in a small grin. Dammit, I wasn't going to smile. I turned back to the screen hoping the grin would fade; it did once I saw the bloody scene playing. I cringed slightly. I wasn't sure how Alex was going to get me to stop screaming, I was pretty sure that was impossible.

I heard a yawn to my left and knew instantly that it belonged to Alex. Only _she_ could yawn at a movie this gory. I looked down at the arm rest between Alex and me so I wouldn't see anymore blood. Odd, her right hand, which had been resting on the arm rest the entire movie, was now gone. I felt movement behind me; then I slight pressure on my right shoulder.

It didn't take a genius to realize she had just put her arm around me. Now, it was _my_ turn to giggle.

I turned to her. "You didn't just pull the lame yawn-and-stretch move on me, did you?" I had the biggest grin on my face as I whispered it to her. I repositioned myself with her arm still around me, to make myself more comfortable. I ended up laying on her chest.

"Maybe." She said rather coyly. "Or maybe I was just slick enough to do it so I could distract you from the fact that six people have been killed on screen in the time we've been talking and you haven't screamed once."

I quickly glanced back to the screen, something I didn't think I'd ever do while watching a horror film. She was right. The body count as added up substantially since I had last peeped at the screen. I hadn't even noticed.

"Am I good or am I good?" Alex flashed a smug grin.

I just stuck my tongue out at her and snuggled in closer to her chest. Suddenly, the movie didn't seem as scary.

--

**A/N**: This chapter's kind of boring because it's just establishing things… 0__0 lol I think it's called a "transition chapter" or something. Anywaaaaays, I have mentioned how much I love you guys? Especially those of you who reviewed and favourited and story-alerted. You make me smile :)

Ohh and special shout out to **i am indistructible**, you made me smile _and_ laugh with your reviews. You're too cool :]


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N**: Hi :) I'm terribly, terribly sorry for not updating, but I had a minor writer's block. And because of that writer's block I wasn't really motivated to write…. I tried solving it by listening to all the romantic songs on my computer on repeat. I dunno if it worked, so this chapter may not seem…complete? Err I dunno.

Ohh I'd also like to thanks those who reviewed. Honestly, every time I read a review, I smile. My reviewers are the one's who inspire me to keep writing, so I just can't thank you enough. I love you guys :]

* * *

Harper was gone.

Vacation. That was the excuse she had told Alex and me. Though personally, I think she just wanted to escape Alex's stupid obnoxious personality. So she wouldn't be in New York for the rest of the summer. Instead she'd be living it up in Paris, then Rome, then Prague, and for some strange reason Alaska. Harper wouldn't be back until the week before school started.

It made me a little nervous. I had made some other friends. Alex had introduced me to people at her school, but when it came down to the core, Alex and Harper were my closest friends. Without Harper….it would be just Alex. No well not just Alex. Alex and me.

So the Tuesday after she left, I was left sitting on a stool at the Russo's Substation pondering what on Earth would happen over the course of the next few months. Justin had informed me on Alex's promiscuous past and had once again warned me that I could be Alex's 'latest victim'; his words not mine.

I put my head in my hands. What was taking Alex so long _anyways_? I looked at my watch. I had been waiting here for twenty minutes. _She_ was the one who had wanted me here at eight a.m. sharp, and now she had left me waiting here. When I had texted Alex that I had just gotten off the subway and would be at her house in a few minutes, she told me she'd be down to meet me. She wasn't.

Well at least I was waiting inside, where there was working air-conditioning. The heat wave that had plagued New York the week I had moved to town had firmly stayed put. There was point when the temperature briefly dipped, much to mine and much of New York's relief, but now it was back to the scorching temperatures.

I let out an exasperated sigh. Why did New York hate me so much? "You know sighing can lead to ulcers?" I looked up. Max was staring at me seriously as he held a bin full of dirty dishes. I raised an eyebrow. "It's true. I read about it on the Internet. Sighing is a clear sign of stress which can lead to stomach ulcers." The youngest Russo added smartly.

I was impressed. It made sense. Well kind of, more than usual when it came to Max. "Thanks for the info, Maxie." I smiled at him warmly. I loved this kid.

Max returned my grin. "No problem. So you better stop sighing, because I bet Alex would be pretty pissed if you got a stomach ulcer and like died or something." He cringed at the thought. "I bet she'd find a way to blame it on me."

I let out a small laugh. It was a sweet thing to say…sort of.

"So where is Alex?" I asked after Max and I talked aimlessly for a few minutes.

"Oh she's in the lai–" He paused suddenly and then hurriedly spat out. "Imeanfridge. She's in the fridge."

I gave him an odd look. She was in the _fridge_? I mean, I knew she liked to eat…but, seriously? The fridge?

"Yeah," Max laughed nervously. "You know Alex…always eating."

Uh-huh. Something was up.

"You know, I'm going to go get her." Max said quickly before leaving.

Well that wasn't weird at all. I stared at the linoleum counter trying to gather my thoughts. Max was definitely avoiding someth–

"BOO!" I felt two hands on my shoulder as I involuntarily jumped up and screamed. I turned around quickly to find none other than the cocky brunette I had been waiting for. I must say, Max worked fast. She wore a wide cheeky grin. "Never gets old."

"Uh, Alex!" I swatted my hand at her arm and tried to glare at her, but her smile was quickly melting away any anger I had. I was more annoyed really, then angry. But that didn't stop me from attempting to sound a little frustrated, just to screw with her a little. She did it to me all the time anyways. "What took so long?"

"Oh sorry." She said still smiling not sounding the least bit apologetic. "My dad was teaching me something…and well I didn't really care about it. Anyways he wouldn't let me leave until I actually made some effort." She rolled her eyes exaggeratedly . "But I weaseled my way out of it when Max came and told me you were here."

"Oh gosh. 'Cause you know, you making effort is just a travesty." I joked sarcastically.

She smiled. "You know me so well."

--

"So where are you taking me?" I asked curiously as we stepped out of the subway and made our way out of the station. I was still getting used to taking the thing. It took me two whole days to figure out how to get from my house riding the underground public transportation to Alex's house, even with the knowledge that her house was just outside Waverly Substation. Without Alex I would have been completely lost. We would have taken Alex's car, but she "forgot" to fill it with gas. More like was too lazy.

She put on a grin. "It's a secret."

"What? Come on. I'm going to find out when we get there anyways. Tell me, please." I asked putting on my best puppy-dog look.

For a second I thought she was actually going to tell me, but of course, she wouldn't give in that easily. "Nope, sorry Mitch. But I've got the whole day planned and if I give one piece away then pretty soon you'll have figured out the entire thing."

"Really?" I enquired, slightly impressed.

She nodded. "Yup. I can't say much. But I know you're going to love it."

Hm. Well I guess I'd be the judge of that. But by the looks of things, if Alex had gone through the trouble of actually planning this out, then it must be pretty big.

"What's all this for?" I asked a little timidly.

She cracked another grin. "_Operation: Get-Mitchie-To-Love-New York_. But shhh, it's a secret."

I scoffed, but smiled myself. She knew I hated New York. Though I had mostly told Harper about my hate of moving to this city, I knew Alex had heard enough of my complaining to get the picture. "I don't think that's possible."

She didn't hesitate at all. "By the end of the day, you'll love New York." She said it with such conviction. I doubted it, but didn't voice this to her. She seemed to be in such a good mood. I didn't want to ruin it.

We strolled out of the subway station and I was instantly hit with the heat. After we walked down a few streets, I began craving the cool air-conditioned atmosphere that the subway station had. I turned to Alex; she wasn't even breaking a sweat. Odd.

We walked down a few more streets until we were close enough to wherever Alex was taking me that she forced me to put a blindfold on so as to "not ruin the surprise." Pssh. I think she just got a kick out of me be totally helpless without her. Which I was anyways since I had no idea where we were going.

"We're almost there." I could practically here her smirking. "Closer…closer." She was guiding me by the hand.

"Okay, we're here." I felt her fumble with the knot of the blindfold. She untied it and my eyes were suddenly filled with Sun. It took me a few seconds for my eyes to adjust, but when I did, they didn't believe what they were seeing. My mouth opened wide in surprise as I took it all in. She did this…she did this for _me_?

She was right. I loved it.

"I know it probably sucks compared to the ones in California, but this one has New York character." I heard her voice and I turned from the amazing scene in front of me to her. She was staring almost nervously at the sand-filled ground.

"It's amazing." I whispered the words out before I knew I had said them. But it was true.

Alex looked up and gave a small smile. "It's a transition. To help you adjust from California to here. But if, you know, New York ever becomes too much. Just come here, and you'll remember California."

My mouth was still agape. I stared at the gift Alex had brought me too. A beautiful blue-water, soft sand New York beach. Simple enough, but it meant everything to me.

I didn't even know New York had one. I hadn't been to the beach since my family's move to the city. We had them everywhere in California, and I always just took them for granted. It was only when I moved here that I realized just how much I missed them.

I had spoken volumes to Harper about wanting to go to a beach and wiggle my feet in the sand and swim carelessly in the water. I had told her desperately about missing those days where friends and I would spend whole weekends just relaxing by the water. Just relaying those memories to Harper had caused me to feel homesick. I never knew Alex had been listening in to those conversations.

"W-where are we?" I asked quietly. I wanted to remember this place. I would come here whenever I missed home.

"A place I knew you'd love." She stated simply but warmly. "Coney Island."

--

We spent the most wonderful morning at Coney Island. It was still early, so tourists and regular New Yorkers wanting to escape the heat hadn't flocked to the beach. There were other people, but it truly felt as if it were just Alex and me.

I laughed a little at the thought. Just three hours ago I was frightened at the thought of just me and her, but now…I don't know….it felt right. You know?

We splashed around a bit, which felt amazing in the dry heat. Somehow, Alex had pulled out my red bikini from the knapsack she was carrying with her. When I asked her how she'd gotten it, she'd just smiled knowingly and relayed like she had previously that it was a "secret". If it wasn't such a great morning, I would have looked into it further. But right now, I didn't care.

I stretched out on the towel that Alex had laid for me on the sand while I watched her attempt to surf. She had rented a board from a little stand a few metres from where I was laying. I had seen so many boys surf in California, that it was as normal to me as driving. But I did think it was a little cute that she was tying to impress me with it, even if she was failing miserably.

I smiled as she jogged towards me after finally giving up. "How was it?" I asked.

She shook water out of her hair before answering. "Pretty good. Did you see me catch some sweet waves?" She said like the stereotypical surfer-dude.

I giggled. "Was that before or after you fell off your board headfirst and into the water?"

She rolled her eyes slightly. "I wasn't that bad." I bit my lip to stop myself from laughing. Actually, she was. But I didn't want to be rude, so I just politely nodded.

She sat down next to me. "I think it's about time we got going anyways."

"What? Why?" I asked incredulously. This was great. Why should we leave?

Alex quickly scanned the beach. "Tourists. They're coming. It's almost noon and pretty soon this beach is going to be packed."

I raised an eyebrow. "So that means we must leave?"

Alex nodded. Then she smiled. "Besides, we still have plenty more to do before _Operation: Love New York_ is done." I pouted, but agreed. So out of reluctance I packed up our things and tossed them into Alex's knapsack and we both quickly changed back into our clothes.

We were just about to leave when Alex suddenly stopped me. "What's wrong?"

She turned to me and grinned. "Nothing. I just gotta do something." She reached a hand into her knapsack, but before she took it out she asked me a question. "Did you enjoy it? Coney Island?" For a second, she seemed unsure. But just for a second.

I nodded sincerely. It had been wonderful. She smiled again and retrieved the object. I squinted from the sunlight as she held it in front of me.

"It's a t-shirt." I stated blandly. It was a small cotton completely blank white shirt. What was so special about that?

Her grin widened. "Yup. Now close your eyes." I gave her an odd look. She laughed slightly. "Just do it." I sighed, but did as she wished.

I closed my eyes tightly. With my eyes closed, I could hear everything just a little better. The soothing sound of the crashing waves seemed just a little heightened. The occasional chatter of the ambiguous people around me seemed just a bit louder. And the ineligible mutterings of Alex were just barely audible.

Wait. Alex was mumbling?

My ears strained a little. Yes. Yes she was. But she was mumbling so quietly. Almost in dead silence.

Then suddenly I could hear her voice at full projection. "Okay, you can open your eyes." I could feel her smile.

I slowly opened my eyes to see her standing in front of me wearing the grin I knew was there and holding the shirt in her right hand.

But something was different. The shirt…it had changed. Well no, it was the same shirt. But it was different. Instead of it being completely blank, there was black lettering on the front. I tried reading it, but couldn't quite decipher the message while the shirt was clutched in Alex's hand. I guess she must have realized this because she unfolded it for me.

It now read "MITCHIE" in black letters.

My mouth widened. "How did you…" I trailed off. How on earth did she do that?

She closed her lips tightly, indicating she wasn't telling me.

I shook my head. "And what does that even mean?"

Her smile grew bigger again. "It's a secr– "

"Secret. I get it." I rolled my eyes slightly. I had a feeling I was going to hear that excuse again and again today.

--

The confines of a blindfold were over my eyes. It had been there for almost the entire time we had been on this boat. After leaving the beach, Alex had taken me to building which had docks located near it. Soon, we had boarded upon a small ferry.

The ferry ride was nice. Alex and I just stood at the edge of our boat watching the water lapse against the boat. Of course, Alex once again had to go all mysterious on me and forced me into another blind fold fifteen minutes into the ferry ride.

Which was were we were now.

I pretended to be mad at her and refused to talk. I could practically feel her roll her eyes in annoyance. I didn't like not knowing where I was going. I was putting way too much faith in Alex. For all I know she could be leading me to my death.

"Don't worry." I heard Alex's voice close to me. I felt her hand reach mine. "Just trust me. You'll be glad when you see Surprise #2. I know you will."

I just nodded. No matter how much I complained, I really did trust her. Really. But for the rest of the trip on the ferry, I screwed with her a little pretending to be mad and bantering with her about the blindfold. I gotta say, it was fun.

When we finally did get off the boat, I felt her practically jump to get the blindfold off. I smiled inwardly.

This time when the blindfold was pulled off my face, my eyes weren't blasted with light. Nope, this time something was in the way of that.

It was huge. And it took me a few seconds to process what I was even seeing.

But when I did, my mouth opened in amazement. Not once since moving to New York had I thought about seeing this remarkable feature of the city. It grazed my mind once or twice, and it had popped up in conversation with Harper a few times as well, but I had actually never thought of coming here.

But I had always wanted too. Leave it to Alex to make me realize that.

"Do you like it?" Alex asked grinning. She already knew I did.

I nodded dumbly. We had stuff like this in California. We had the Hollywood Sign and tons of other American landmarks. But this was different. This was the essence of my country. And Alex had brought me here.

I looked up at the large, solid figure. The Statue of Liberty had never looked more inviting.

"So this," Alex started explaining, as if she needed justification for bring me here. "Is what New York is all about." I turned to her. "California may have good weather, and people who can actually surf, but it don't got Lady Liberty watching over you; making sure you're safe. Now that you've seen this, you're officially a New Yorker."

I nodded and stepped a little closer to the Statue and to Alex.

"See the torch?" She pointed with her finger. "It's on all the time: day or night. It doesn't matter who you are, or where you're from. It doesn't matter if you've lived in New York you're whole life, or just a month. Because it will always shine. And even if there are millions of people in New York, it always seems like it's shining just for you."

I smiled faintly. It was a comforting thought. All I wanted to find in New York was some familiarity. I think I'd finally found it. "And what happens if one day it goes out?"

"Well then the world goes into chaos." She joked. "But seriously, it won't go out. I can promise you that."

I kept my pale smile, but I raised an eyebrow. Was that so?

She must have noticed my disbelief, because she let out a small laugh. "Okay, how bout this? The day the torch goes out, is the day you know Alex Russo is committed." She chuckled again. "So don't worry, it's never gonna go out."

I opened my mouth slightly. So now she was _admitting _she was player? Well…she wasn't admitting, but she definitely was implying. I really hadn't wanted to believe Justin. Really. I hated people like that. People who just moved from one girl to another.

I took a step to widen the distance between me and her. Suddenly, I just wanted to go home.

She looked confused. "Mitch – ?"

I took another step between us. "I, uh…" Maybe Justin was right. Maybe Alex _did_ just want to get into my pants. If that was the case…then did she really want to be friends?

"Alex…" I paused. I didn't know how to say it. So I didn't. "C-can you please just take me home?"

For a second, she looked confused. Then she cracked a grin. "Can't. Ferry doesn't come for half an hour."

"What?!"

She smiled again. "Looks like you're stuck on this island with me…and Lady Liberty."

I just stared at her for a few seconds. My confusion was quickly becoming replaced with frustration. I wasn't going to stay in this tiny island with a girl who just wanted to have sex with me. I wasn't. "Fine!" I almost yelled it at her, but somehow I kept my voice modestly level. "I'm just gonna wait by the docks then." I said before storming off.

"Suit yourself!" I heard her call comically. God, why did she have to make _everything_ a joke?

I didn't turn around as I reached the docks, but I knew she was following. I could hear the pitter-patter of her feet against the cool cement of the path. I saw there was a line to board the next ferry out, to which I quickly joined. Once again, I could hear Alex jogging from where she was until she was standing next to me.

I felt her place her arm around my shoulders, something she's done a lot since the time I first let her at the movies, but I quickly shrugged it off. I _really_ wasn't in the mood. "Don't, Alex!" I warned seriously while giving her a genuine glare.

"Aw, come on Mitch." Her cocky attitude was still there. "You know you love it?" I turned to her. I was going to yell at her to leave me alone, but at the sight of her smile, my anger started to mysteriously disappear.

So instead, I was going to respond with a witty comment. But before I could even open my mouth, someone else's voice rang through.

"Do you two have your tickets ready?" Our fight was interrupted by a petite blonde girl standing in front of us. She was wearing a red polo shirt with the words "_Statue Cruises Co."_ The girl looked no more than sixteen, which meant this was probably her summer job.

I turned to Alex. She was the one who had sorted all that out on our ferry ride here. She was grinning at the girl. "Yeah…of course." She reached into her pocket and pulled out two tickets before handing them to the blonde; throughout the whole process, her eyes never leaving her.

There was twinkle in Alex's eyes that I had never seen before. She left her hand touching the other girl's for a second longer than I thought was really necessary.

"I'm Alex." Alex introduced herself coolly. She kept her hand out to shake with the blonde, who quickly took it.

"Bridget." The blonde smiled timidly.

Alex smirked charmingly. "Nice to meet you Bridget." Then Alex brought the back of Bridget's hand, which she was still holding by the way, to her lips and…and… kissed it.

My jaw dropped. What the fu– ?

The blonde blushed feverously. "Uh...T-thank you?" She looked a little confused as what to say. I guess I would too.

Alex charming smile was still in place. "You going on break soon?"

The blonde nodded. "As soon as I collect the last two tickets…which were yours. So I guess…I'm done."

"Alone?" The brunette next to me asked. Bridget nodded.

"That's a shame. A pretty thing like you," Alex added. "Should never be alone during a break. It's just horrible, really."

She flashed a smile at Alex. "You know…" The blonde trailed off shyly. "The ferry doesn't come for a while…do y-you maybe want to grab a drink or something? Just during my break? So I wouldn't be alone."

W-wait. WHAT?! Did she just ask what I think she did?

Who was this girl? Did she not see that I was there? Hello! _I_ was with Alex. Not her. The glare that I had formerly intended for Alex was directed straight to this girl. Who on earth did she think she was?

And what the heck did Alex think she was doing? Did she completely forget I was here? That we were just fighting moments ago?

Before Alex could answer, I realized my voice had spoken up. "No thank you, _Bridget_." I said her name almost venomously. "Alex and I actually have plans…you know, to see…the Statue."

The blonde turned to me for the first time since her unwelcome introduction. She raised an eyebrow. "Right? So that's why you're in line to leave."

My cheeks flushed instantly at my mistake.

She twisted her head back to Alex. "Are you really here with her?" She asked narrowing her eyes toward me. Alex nodded. "Well then I can see you're busy, with your _friend_." She stressed the last part. "So I guess we'll just have to do it another time."

Alex was still smiling idiotically at her.

"Here." The blonde pulled out a pen and took Alex's palm. She scribbled something on the brunette's hand.

I could barely contain myself. I just wanted to grab this girl and throw her into the water surrounding this island. _But you would never do that_, I reminded myself. No. But I knew I was going to get Alex away from this girl.

Before the blonde was done writing on Alex's palm, I snatched the two tickets Alex had given to her from her other hand and forcibly grabbed Alex's right arm. Then, without a second glance to _Bridget_, I pulled Alex with as much might as I could back towards the Statue.

I didn't look back. I was scared that I would see Alex staring longingly at Bridget or something. So I kept my head straight at the Statue of Liberty as I walked toward the famous American landmark. Halfway through, I let go of Alex as I felt her pace meet mine at it's quicken speed.

As soon as we were a safe distance from _Bridget_, I grabbed Alex's palm. "Mitchie, what are you doin– ?" But I shut her up quickly as I pressed my tongue upon it. I was almost positive that her breathing hitched. I removed my tongue and quickly rubbed the saliva that I had just deposited on Alex's palm so whatever ink that…that Bridget had written on there was messy and ineligible.

I stared at her palm. The writing was completely unreadable. I smiled to myself. Perfect.

"Now what'd you do that for?"

I froze.

I had acted impulsively. If I had just stopped and thought about what I was doing for a second, I know I wouldn't have just rubbed my tongue all over her hand. Oh God, she must think I'm challenged or something. I slowly looked up towards her, awaiting her angry stare.

But it wasn't there.

Instead there was her trademark grin.

That stupid smile. It made my stomach churn. She turned her head slightly. "Well?" She asked warmly.

Oh right. I guess she expected me to answer or something. "I…uh…I." I stuttered to buy sometime to think of an excuse. "Uh, well. You know? I…I didn't think that what she wrote had any substance. It was probably some stupid promotion for the company she worked for." I almost shuddered at my extremely lame excuse. I was pretty gullible, and even _I_ wouldn't have bought that stupid excuse. I paused hoping she would.

I could tell she was trying to hold in her laughter. "Really?"

I nodded slowly. "Y-you believe me, right?"

She let out a small chuckle. "Sure."

I was almost positive she didn't. No scratch that. I knew she didn't. But I wasn't going to pressure the matter, especially since I was the one who had just slobbered all over her. So I let her doubtfulness slide.

We walked around the island a little, but I made sure that we didn't go anywhere near the docks. It was nice. After awhile, I let Alex put her arm around me and we took a few pictures like that with the camera that Alex retrieved from her bag.

Eventually, we had walked around the entire island. The only thing left to do was either go back to the docks, which I definitely didn't want to do, or go into the Statue itself. The latter sounded pretty reasonably, but then again, the line was intensely long. I wouldn't be surprised if it took all day.

"Do you want to go up?" She seemed to have read my thoughts.

I looked up to the head of the Statue and then past it at the never-ending ceiling of the blue sky. It made me a little dizzy. Suddenly, it didn't look like such a good idea.

If I was up there…and I looked down. I shuddered and involuntarily grabbed Alex's hand. I hated heights.

She grinned instantly at our contact. "I'm gonna take that as a yes." She dragged me a few feet towards the massive Statue.

"No. No, wait! Alex!" I tried resisting, but she was stronger than I. "I…I'm not good with heights!"

Her eyes twinkled mischievously. "All the better reason to go up there. Conquer your fears and all."

And with that, she dragged me up to the top of the intensely tall Statue.

--

"This is the last time. I promise." Alex's voice rang in my head clearly.

The blindfold was on my eyes again. I couldn't see anything, but that improved my hearing as it had this morning.

"Okay, good." I chuckled slightly. "But I don't see why you can't just tell me where we're going." We were walking on some New York City street. Almost immediately after walking out of the subway station Alex had put me into the blindfold once again.

"That would ruin the surprise. Besides, what kind of secret agent would I be if I revealed all my top secrets?" She joked. I just shrugged my shoulders.

I felt Alex wrap her arms around me, so that my back was pressed against her front. She gently guided me through whatever maze it was that I couldn't see. I imagined this must look pretty silly to an onlooker on the streets.

Minutes passed and I was beginning to wonder exactly where Alex was taking me. The blindfolded trips of the day had never taken this long. That's when she suddenly stopped. I felt hot breath tickle my neck. She whispered into my ear, "We're here, beautiful."

Beautiful. For some reason I flashed back to the day of Harper's party. To the day I first met Alex. Beauty.

I blinked a few times, and that's when the light hit me. I had been so engrossed in my thoughts, that I hadn't even realized Alex had removed my blindfold. It was a different kind of light then the kind I had experienced during the day. This one had a darker, twilighty feel. I didn't know what time it was, but I guessed it must have been some time in the early to mid evening.

Once my eyes adjusted to the ambient light, I focused forward on what Alex had come to show me.

My mouth would have opened, but it had done that twice already today, and my jaw was starting to hurt a little because of it; so I just stared at it.

_Amazing_, was the one thought it my head. But that didn't give it justification.

Words couldn't even describe the stunning scene in front of me. Today, Alex had brought me to a lovely beach and to an American landmark, but this…this was just….beautiful.

I'm sure in daylight, this was stunning. But at twilight, with a pink and purple sky and the twinkling lights from buildings in the distance, the picturesque landscape in front of me was gorgeous. No not even gorgeous. Magical. It was magical.

I was staring at the most absolutely beautiful scenic view of the New York City landscape. There was a large pond, to which buildings dotted the outskirts. The beautiful water was reflecting the pink evening sky and the buildings were sparkling with evening charm.

"Say something," Alex laughed lowly.

I faced her slowly. I had almost forgotten she was there.

My mouth tried to form words, but they just wouldn't. Everything from today, Alex must have put so much thought into it. So much _effort_ into planning. Everything had been planned. Every ticket had been purchased ahead of time, every event designed to the minute where we had the leave to begin the next. She knew to take me here at sunset. She knew that at that time I would love it. She knew to make it last, because that's how I would want to end the day. It was all just so…_romantic._

"It's beautiful," I finally managed to say.

She let out a small smile. "I've seen better." But she wasn't looking at the pond and the beautiful cityscape, she was looking at me.

"Where are we?" I asked.

She chuckled. "I'm surprised you don't recognize it. You recognized the State of Liberty."

I gave her an odd look. "Well that's an American icon."

She laughed again. "And this isn't?"

I was confused. I had never seen this spot before, and I'm sure only New Yorkers knew of it. I looked around to take in my surroundings. I was on a path and I was surrounded by trees. Suddenly, a jogger appeared on the path. Without a second glance towards us, he continued on his way.

Then it clicked. I almost laughed at loud. I couldn't believe I didn't recognize it. "We're in Central Park." I stated as I started laughing. She looked confused. But I still laughed. I didn't want her to think I was laughing at her gesture, because it was a remarkable gesture. So I added, "I just can't believe you did this. All of it. No one's done something so sweet for me before."

She smirked. "So you like it then?" I nodded as my laughter subsided. I didn't want to sound rude. Besides, I hadn't laughed because I thought it was stupid. I'd laughed because just last week, I had told Harper that taking me to Central Park at Sunset was my ideal first date.

Ironic, huh?

"This," Alex motioned to the park, pond, and cityscape, "is _your_ New York. The beach was a transition, the Statue of Liberty was for you to find a place in New York… like a welcome, but Central Park ," she paused slightly as if to build dramatic effect, "is when New York found a place for you."

I let the words settle in for a while, and then I attempted to speak. "Alex…I-I." I didn't know what to say. How could I possibly express the gratitude for this amazing day? Just saying 'thank you' would not be enough.

I subconsciously moved closer to her and before I knew it, I had grasped her hand and then naturally intertwined our fingers. I had never been the one to initiate contact between the two of us. Alex was always the one who held me or grabbed my hand before I rolled my eyes and tried to pull away. But right now, I was drawn toward it. I couldn't thank her enough for the fantastic day she had given me, so I held her hand in a hope that she would understand.

I think she got the message.

We walked, hand-in-hand, around Central Park for a while. Soon, the dusk sky was replaced with a dark one. The sky shone with stars that were barely visible. The trees around us swayed a little as a light breeze blew through. Considering that the temperatures had been scorching all day, it felt rather nice.

I had never visited Central Park in person before, though I had seen it quite a few times in romantic comedies, so I had a vague sense of where were going. I shivered a little and Alex asked if I was cold. It was getting a little chilly (well for a heat wave) and I nodded. She took a light American Apparel sweater out of her knapsack and gave it to me. What didn't she have in that bag?

We stopped a bench to rest for a while. I instantly leaned into Alex and she put her arms around me. When I thought about today, I just couldn't help but smile. Alex was a great friend. She did so much for me. I felt her rest her chin on my shoulder from behind me. Then she effortlessly pulled me into her lap. I would have complained, but the long day was finally starting to take a toll. I was too tired to argue with her, so I just kept smiling faintly and let Alex hold me tightly. Before I knew it, my eyelids started to slowly shut.

"Mitch?" I heard Alex say into my neck.

"Hmmm."

"Did you like the Statue of Liberty?" I nodded slightly, my eyes still shut. I could feel her breathing. "And you liked Central Park, right?" Again, I nodded. "Okay, good." One of her arms untangled itself from me and I heard a zip from what I assumed was her backpack.

My eyes fluttered open to see what she was doing. She had the white t-shirt from earlier in her hand. I had completely forgotten about it. I gave her a quizzical look.

"Close your eyes." She whispered to me. So naturally, I opened mine wider. She chuckled and told me again. I pouted, but I did as she asked me. "Tell me you loved the Statue."

"I loved it when you took me too see the Statue of Liberty." I repeated lazily. As soon as I finished she mumbled something lowly, which I couldn't quite catch.

"Open your eyes." I did. Miraculously, there was a red heart located under my name on the shirt; now such so that the shirt read "MITCHIE 3".

"How did you– ?" I began astounded.

"Secret." Alex smiled and tightly closed her lips. "Now close them pupils again." I tried to roll my eyes, but I was so tired that in the middle of it, they automatically shut. I heard Alex snicker. She paused, and then almost commanded. "Tell me you loved Central Park."

"I loved Central Park."

I heard Alex make inaudible noises. She was muttering some more. Then she wasn't. "Before you open your eyes, tell me if you liked today. Tell me if you love New York." This time she said it much more gently.

I didn't even have to think about it. "I love New York."_ And I love you_. It almost popped out. But it didn't. I don't know what caused that thought to get into my head…maybe it was my sleep-deprived state.

I knew she was smiling. "Thought so. Mission was success." She laughed slightly. "Okay, open your eyes."

I did.

The shirt had two letters added to it: "NY". So all together it read. "MITCHIE 3 NY".

I didn't even ask how she did it. I didn't care.

I just stared at the shirt a long time, my mouth agape. Alex had this ridicules grin on her face, which meant I guess she was enjoying my reaction.

She must have known that by the end of the day, I would have succumbed to her idea that New York was okay. I have no idea how; it was almost as if she knew me better than myself. Like she knew exactly where to take me so that I wouldn't hate this stupid city anymore. That scared me a little.

"Put it on." Alex's voice carried to my ears.

I shrugged off the sweater she had given me earlier. I lifted my arms and pulled on the cotton shirt over the tank I was wearing. It fit comfortably around the hips and hugged my body.

"There." She gave me a goofy smile. "Now you look like the typical tourist: lost, confused, and loving New York. Suits you perfectly." I scoffed slightly, but didn't bother to retort her mild insult.

"Today was amazing." It really was. I looked up at the night sky. It was so beautiful, just like everything else I had seen today. It had been a long day, but one that I would never forget. Then a thought popped in my head. "Alex? How am I supposed to get home?"

"Oh, I got you covered. You can stay at my place." I raised an eyebrow sceptically. I doubted my parents would let me stay over at a Alex's house again. "Don't give me that look." Alex joked. "Don't worry, they'll say yes."

I shrugged. Then I yawned idly.

"I guess it's about time to go then?" Alex asked. I bopped my head up and down; sleep was starting to overtake me again. She smiled and then gently lifted me off her lap. As soon as she got off the bench, she intertwined our fingers. "How bout I call a cab? That way you can get some sleep on the way to my place and not have complete strangers look at you?"

"Hmmm." Was all I managed to get out. Alex chuckled and guided me out of the park.

--

I called my parents when we got to Alex's place and they agreed to let me stay the night over. My dad was really beginning to trust Alex, which was odd since he never actually met her. But I wasn't gonna complain. I walked from the bathroom, where I had been changing into some of Alex's pyjamas, back to her room with a fresh smile on my face. Ever since the cab ride and Central Park, I had been in a giddy mood. I just couldn't stop smiling and giggling.

_BAM_. A door had suddenly opened and hit me square in the head. I stumbled back a few steps before straight-out falling.

"Oh I'm so sorry." I heard a voice say apologetically above me. I felt a pair of hands slowly raise me back up. "I didn't see you there…wait, Mitchie?"

My vision was still a little blurry from the hit, but I looked up and saw the fuzzy yet clear outline of Justin Russo.

I felt him staring at me. For a while he didn't say anything. I awkwardly stood there until I actually thought about just leaving him there until he finally spoke. "You fell for it."

"Actually I think you were the one who hit me."

"No…no. Not that. I'm sorry again, about that." He paused and seemed a little disappointed. "You fell for something else."

I was tired and my head hurt. I just wanted him to get to his point, so I tried to be blunt in the most polite way possible. "Sorry, I fell for what?"

"The Alex Charm."

Did I hear him right? Maybe I had hit my ears as well. "What?! No I didn't."

He shook his head sadly and took in my appearance. "You're spending the night."

"As friends." I quickly added.

"In the same bed." Justin retorted kindly.

"I-I…friends do that all the time." Alex only had one bed, and it was big enough for the both of us, so naturally we would sleep together.

"Sure they do." He looked as if he was going to say something else, but didn't. "Just don't come crying to me when she breaks your heart." He shook his head as he walked down the hall without a second glance at me.

I just stared at his retrieving figure for a while. I, for one, didn't know what he was talking about. I was just friends with Alex. Nothing more. I hadn't fallen for her stupid charm.

Right?

--

A/N: Again, I apologize for this just sucking and for the lack of updates :( … And um, I'm sorry if I got some geographical or transportation facts of New York wrong, because I was basically using Wikipedia to get my facts :P Lol and um, I had a link that showed the view that Alex gave Mitchie at Central Park buut I couldn't get it to work D: haha so I might post it on my profile or something.

Sorry for the major cheesiness -____- And I'm sorry if it seems rushed lol. And I'm sorry that's its soo long… And again I'm sorry that it took foreva for this to come out lol. Apologies all around xP

Um…to my anonymous reviewer…can I have my cookie now? *gives puppy dog eyes* lol jk. :)


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: ** As of yesterday, I'm officially a high school senior! Omg lol, I like practically cried walking into school. Last year of high school, it's soooo sad! Haha anyways, this is kinda short, but I wanted to just post it since I don't know how frequent I'll be able to update with school and all. So enjoy :)

--

"Aw, Mitch this is boring."

I rolled my eyes at Alex's whining. It hadn't stopped since the minute we stepped into the grocery store and started shopping.

My mom had asked me to pick up some groceries for the week since she was going to be in New Jersey for the day visiting a friend and well my dad….he was useless when it came to food. Like an idiot, I had asked Alex if she had wanted to come. I've regretted that every second we've been in this store.

I moved the shopping cart into Aisle 6 where the frozen food items were held. I looked down at the list my mom had given me. She wanted some frozen vegetables and pizzas. Simple enough. I quickly spotted them and moved the cart so I could get the items.

Of course with Alex, it's never that easy.

"Can we get this?" She asked pulling some Ben & Jerry's ice cream out of one of the store freezers before I could even respond and placing it in the cart.

I shot a glare at her. "What? No." I picked up the ice cream and put it back.

"Fine. How 'bout this?" This time she placed a box of green popsicles in the cart.

I shook my head slightly and put the popsicles back. "No, Alex."

"Okay, okay, I see what you really want is some fudgsicles." She cracked a smile and began reaching for a 24-pack of the frozen treats.

I shook my head and intercepted to box before she even placed in the cart. I swiftly put it back in the freezer.

"Whhhhhhhy not?" She whined again.

"Because it's not on the list." I stated simply.

"But there's a heat wave. Don't you want to cool down a bit?" She was acting like a five-year-old. But she did make some sense.

I didn't want to say no. I didn't. It was hot. Freaking blazing outside; and even with Safeway's air-conditioning on full blast, I could still feel a trickle of the heat in the grocery store. Once we got outside I knew I would do almost anything to eat something cold. But my mom had trusted me with her money to buy exactly what was on her shopping list. I wasn't about to betray her trust. Somebody had to be the adult, and it sure as heck wasn't going to be Alex.

Alex gave a mock scoff. At first I thought she was really mad at me, but then I saw her crack a grin.

I put my head in my hands, partly out of frustration, but more so to conceal the smile on my face. Every time I saw Alex smile, I couldn't stop myself from forming my own.

I think Alex took it as frustration though. "Jeeze, Mitchie. I don't see why you're getting like this. You're the one who asked me to come." I looked up. She was still smiling.

"Well I wouldn't have if I'd known that I'd have to baby you the entire time." I replied rather coolly, but still with the smallest hint of a grin.

Her smile widened, which I didn't think was possible. "Oh so I'm your baby?"

"W-what?"

"I'm your baby." She stated again, her grin getting bigger every second. "I'm your baby." She repeated almost victoriously.

"N-no." Why could I suddenly not form proper sentences? "I just meant that I didn't think I would have to mother you while you acted like a total child."

She flashed another smile at me. "Whatever you say."

Then she pulled my hand and dragged me away from the shopping cart down the aisle. I stiffened almost instantly. Ever since that night I slept over at Alex's, the night where Justin had so kindly implied that I had fallen under his sister's spell, I hadn't let Alex touch me at all. Oh she tried, but I always managed to pull away when she tried to hold my hand or fumble off when she pulled me into her lap. No such luck this time. She had my hand locked tightly within hers.

We stopped right in front of the first item she had tried to place in the cart: the Ben & Jerry's ice cream.

I started at the ice cream for a few seconds, confused. I was about to ask her what she was trying to pull when I felt two hands snake around my waist. I knew instantly they were Alex's.

She was behind me, with her hands around my waist. We were placed so my back was in her front. Her head was resting softly on my shoulder. And for some reason, the first thing that popped in my head wasn't what-the-hell-is-she-doing, but that we fit perfectly together.

She whispered into me ear. "Are you sure you don't want any ice cream, _baby_?"

My breathing hitched. I swear for a few seconds, I didn't breathe at all.

"I-I." I stuttered. Before I couldn't form proper sentences, now I couldn't even form proper words.

She took a hand of my waist and placed it on my right thigh. Instantly, I opened my mouth as if to groan. I bit my lip to stop myself.

"It's okay to want some," she continued whispering. "Don't be scared."

My breathing became heavier. I didn't say anything for a few seconds and either did she. What was she _doing_? Didn't she get it? I…I wasn't like that.

I took a step forward, breaking our contact. "N-no." I said, still stuttering slightly. "I don't want any ice cream." I said it a little more harshly then I intended too. Then I swiftly walked back to the shopping cart. I turned around to face her. She was looking at her feet, almost ashamedly. I saw her nod so slightly.

"Maybe you should just go wait in the car." I said looking away from her. I took out the list of things I still had to buy and quickly read it. With Alex here, I knew I would get distracted to easily. Much too easily. It would take me forever to finish shopping.

"What kind of mother just leaves their child in a car in the middle of a heat wave?" Alex asked joking. I turned too look at her and she was wearing a mischievous grin. I almost sighed in relief. She was back to her normal self.

"Well you may be a child, but I am definitely not your mother." I replied adding to our banter. "So as far as I'm concerned, you could fry, as long as it means I can finish grocery shopping in peace."

Alex gave a small laugh. "Please, you love it when I distract you."

I gave her a glare. "No I don't."

"Uh, yeah, you do." Her smile was ear-to-ear.

"No, I don't!"

"Yeah…you do." And I replied back with which so did she. That was much of how we spent the next twenty minutes or so: Alex and I arguing back and forth while I attempted to shop. If it was with anybody else, I would have been intensely annoyed with them….but it wasn't. It was with Alex, so for some reason, it was okay.

I picked up some Romaine lettuce, placed it in the cart, and crossed it off my list. It was to my gracious surprise when I realized I only had two items left on the list. I had been so busy retorting Alex that I had barely noticed that my list was almost done. I smiled at the thought.

"Okay, so what's left?" Alex asked.

"Just milk and some Doritos chips for my dad."

"Great! We're almost done!" Alex declared dramatically. I giggled softly. "Okay, I'll grab the chips, you get the milk, and then we can get out of here." It was the first useful thing Alex had said all day, so I agreed.

I found the milk easily and placed it in the cart. I looked down at my watch. It was five. My mom would be home soon from her day in New Jersey. I told her that I thought I'd be done grocery shopping an hour ago. But then again, I hadn't expected Alex to be such a bother.

I quickly pushed the cart to the chip aisle to tell Alex we had to leave. But she wasn't there. Leave it to Alex to screw up something as easily as grabbing some chips.

I tried the next lane. Alex wasn't there. I tried the next lane over, she wasn't there. I became frantic. I ran to the back of the store, she wasn't there. I ran to the front. No such luck.

I decided to look up and down the aisles in a vain attempt to locate her. And then I saw her right between Aisles 5 and 7. In Aisle 6: Frozen Foods.

She was in front of one the freezers, standing incredibly close to it. The same one where the Ben & Jerry's ice cream was held. The Doritos bag was in her left hand.

She breathed on the glass, like people do on car windows before they use their fingers to write a message. Sure enough, she brought her right index finger to the glass and traced it along the plane as if writing something.

I watched in fascination, but then I remembered we had to go.

"Alex! What are you doing?" I called. She snapped her head up and saw me.

"Nothing." She grinned and made her way to me. "Time to go?" I just nodded.

She grabbed the shopping cart from me with one hand, threw the chip bag into it, and pulled the cart to the closest register. With her other hand she grabbed one of mine and dragged me with her.

I was still looking at the glass door of the store freezer, trying to read what Alex had written. She grabbed me rather fast, so I couldn't be 100% sure of what I had read.

But I could have sworn the message Alex had written on the glass door said 'A + M' with a heart around it.

--

Alex drove me home. She didn't rush or anything on the way back to my house even though I told her my mom would be angry if I showed up late. She just smiled and said she was great with parents and that if my mom was angry she'd be able to calm her down. I seriously doubted that, but Alex was so cocky, nothing I said persuaded her otherwise.

She turned onto my street and I pointed out my house.

"This is your _house_?" She asked exaggeratedly as we pulled into my driveway. "This thing is HUGE."

I just rolled my eyes.

"It comes with a name, doesn't it? All big houses do." Alex continued to marvel at my house. "Lemme guess, it's like _The Torres Manor_? Or something like that?"

I stepped out of the car and grabbed a bag of groceries. She did the same. I turned to her and raised and eyebrow, "It's just a house."

"Sure, sure. You're just probably hiding Batman's secret lair under there." She laughed at her own lame joke while I rolled my eyes again. Or maybe she was laughing at me rolling my eyes.

I went to unlock the front door, but it was already open. Oh crap, that couldn't be good.

"Mitchie?" I heard a voice which I instantly recognized as my mom's. "Is that you?" _Busted_.

"Uh…yeah." I called back. I slowly made my way to the kitchen were I put down the bag of groceries. My mom walked in. She didn't look happy.

"Where have you been, young lady?" She asked sternly using her 'mom' tone.

"I, uh, was grocery shopping. Like you asked."

"Yes, but I didn't expect you to take all afternoon doing so. There weren't that many items on the list, honey. It should have taken, at most, half-an-hour. I expected you home when I arrived." _Well you didn't have Alex complaining every five seconds_, I thought to myself.

"It's my fault, Mrs. Torres." Speak of the devil, Alex walked into the kitchen with a look of…was that apology? "I kept Mitchie too long at the grocery store and I was stuck in that nasty New York traffic on the way back her to drop her off. I didn't want to speed, even at Mitchie's instance, because you know, safety first."

My mother turned to her, a look of surprise on her face. "Oh…" Then my mother turned to me. "Mitchie! You asked this young lady to speed for you! Oh my, I can't believe you would do such a thing."

My mouth opened. _What_? "Mom, I –" I stopped as I saw Alex behind my mom. One of her trademark grins was on her face. It looked like she was enjoying this.

"No, no. I don't want to hear it Mitchie." She put her hand up to silence me even though I wasn't even talking. "But I am glad to hear that your little friend here cares much more about your safety than you do yourself. What did you say your name was, dear?" She turned back to Alex who instantly stopped grinning and put her 'apologetic' look back on.

I couldn't believe my mom was buying this.

"I didn't. My apologies. It's rude of me not to have introduced myself." My mom smiled at her. If there was anything my mom loved, it was a person with good manners. Based on her first meeting with Alex, I bet my mom thought she possessed that quality. "I'm Alex Russo, I'm Mitchie's friend. It's very nice to meet you Mrs. Torres."

"Oh so you're the young lady Mitchie keeps talking so much about." I blushed slightly. I hadn't really wanted Alex to know that. "Well, dear, it's very nice to meet you too. But please, call me Connie." My jaw almost dropped. Never, had I brought someone home and so quickly had my mom warmed up to them. It usually took a month before my mom let a friend of mine call her Connie. It had yet to happen with any boyfriends of mine.

"That's a very nice gesture Mrs. Torres. But referring to adults as Mr. and Mrs. indicates a level of respect that a first name basis just does not. I'm flattered that you would allow me to call you by your first name, but I wouldn't feel right by doing so." My mom giggled. _She giggled_.

"Oh, alright then." She smiled at Alex. "And I apologize on Mitchie's behalf for pressuring you into speeding. You did the right thing, dear." Then my mother turned to me. "If you had told me that you were late because Alex here was just trying to keep both of you safe on these dangerous New York roads, then I wouldn't have been angry at all."

I just looked at her. Like she had even given me the chance to explain any of that. But I bit my tongue, like I always did. I was a good girl after all. "I'm sorry, Mom." My mom smiled at me indicating it was okay.

"I'd like to help Mitchie unload the groceries from my car, if that's alright with you Mrs. Torres." Alex asked it to my mom so politely, I could hardly believe it was her talking.

My mom smiled at her again and nodded. I could tell she was liking Alex more and more every second. Then my mom walked over and kissed me on the cheek and walked to the living room.

Alex walked up to me with a smug grin on her face. "I told you I was good with parents. Your mom loves me."

I sent her a small glare. "Yeah but I'm pretty sure she loves me less now."

She laughed. "No, I can read people pretty well. She loves me, but she still loves you like a hundred million times more." It was a pretty standard thing to say, but it still made me feel better.

"And whatever, it doesn't really matter, because I did it."

"Did what?" I asked.

"I got you out of trouble. Like I said I would. And you didn't believe I could." She said it with pride.

I shrugged. She was right, but if I told her that her already large ego would grow even larger.

"I think I deserve a kiss." She said suddenly.

"A what?!"

"A kiss." She stated as if it was nothing.

"Uh, why?" I asked playing oblivious, because I was.

"Because I just saved your skin…and because you're my mother, remember?" She was referring to our banter back at the store. "Your mother just kissed _you_. I think I should get one too." She said it like her logic made perfect sense.

"I-I, uh…" I _had_ to stop stuttering. It'd been freaking stuttering all day.

I wanted to make an excuse. I did. But for some reason, out of all the excuses running through my head at that moment, none of them seemed good enough to deny her what she wanted.

So before my brain could even process what was going on, I had already leaned in. And before my lips even knew what they were doing, they were pressed against her soft cheek where they lingered for a few seconds. And I'm pretty sure that before Alex even realized what I had done, I had pulled away.

But I knew what I had done. And my body could sense that. My lips were burning. They felt like they were on fire. My heart was pounding about one hundred times a second.

She started at me with wide eyes. Her mouth was ajar. And I was…calm. Well, calmer.

For a few fleeting seconds, I felt a bit of pride, because I was probably the only person in New York that had ever made Alex Russo shut up.

"Y-you…" I smiled. I was probably the only person who had ever made her stutter too.

And then, as if on cue, my mom walked in.

"Mitchie, it's so hot in here." Oh you have no idea. "Did you buy any frozen treats? I know it wasn't on the list…I guess I should have put it on there."

I turned to her, my eyes leaving Alex. "Oh, I'm sorry Mom. I didn't."

"Oh, that's alright honey. I guess I can just buy some tomorrow. But it's a shame. You both look so flustered right now. I can tell the heat is getting to the both of you. I'm sure you would have appreciated some frozen snacks."

"Yeah, Mitchie, that's too bad. We could have picked up some ice cream." Alex said it while looking straight at me.

--

**A/N: **Ohhhh I think the heat is getting to Mitchie. In more ways then one… Do you? Muahah ;]

Reviews are always appreciated :]


	6. Chapter 6 Deleted Scene

**A/N**: Hi there:) Okay, okay, I know I suck. It's been five… six months since the last update? And I'm really really really sorry :( More is soon to come! I promise lol. But I decided to write this little deleted scene to fill in the void of my non-updates. I wrote it in third person because it's not technically part of the plot, and because Alex's mind is supercool to dabble into lol. I'm like halfway through the actual next update, so hopefully that'll be done soon :P

Hope you guys are having a good Easter. And enjoy!

* * *

**Deleted Scene: A Trip To The Doctor's**

(in between Ch. 5 and 7)

Alex Russo was never one to follow orders. Never.

But when she got a frantic call from Mitchie one afternoon demanding that Alex drive her to the doctors, because apparently Alex had promised she would and she like, forgot or something, she decided to make an exception.

Completely out of the kindness of her heart.

So when they arrived at the doctor after an intensely awkward car ride filled with the silent treatment – with Alex at the receiving end – Alex couldn't have been happier.

With nothing but time to kill until Mitchie was to see the doctor, Alex had plenty of time to not-apologize, but simply explain how if hypothetically she had promised to drive Mitchie to the doctor, it could have hypothetically slipped her mind.

After a few minutes of angry gazes shot her away, Alex's not-apology was accepted. Alex sighed, not out of relief, but out contempt for the situation's end. She relaxed and Mitchie leaned into her.

--

Once Mitchie was called to the see the doctor an elongated boredom overtook Alex. She rested her head against the wall behind the plastic chair she was sitting at and closed her eyes.

That was, until, Alex felt a poke at her side.

She opened one eye slowly. Then the other in surprise.

Because what she saw, was a little girl.

"Hi." the little girl greeted with a precocious smile. "My name's Sarah."

"Uh…hi," Alex replied with an eyebrow raised. She glanced at the girl. She was holding a small hardcover storybook. "Alex."

"I'm sorry to bother you, Alex." the little girl said shyly, "but my Nana fell asleep." The little girl pointed to an elderly women sleeping on a blue plastic chair near the entrance. "And I really wanted someone to read me a story…" Sarah held up the little storybook.

"Oh…" Alex trailed off, not really knowing what to do or say. "Um….why don't you ask someone else?" _Someone more responsible_.

The little girl scrunched her face. "Because I'm not supposed to talk to strangers. And all the people here are strange or creepy." Alex glanced around the room. Indeed, aside from Alex, Sarah, her grandmother, and the receptionist, the only other occupants in the room were a middle aged man and an extremely sick looking young adult.

"Okay, point taken." What could be the harm in reading this girl her story? Besides, it was kind of cool not being categorized into 'strange' or 'creepy'. Alex hesitated slightly before adding, "Hop on." The little girl quickly jumped into Alex's lap.

"You're gonna like this story," Sarah explained. "It's about a Cho Cho train who's never late or forgets anything."

"I bet Mitchie would've liked that one." Alex mumbled quietly.

"Mitchie?" The little girl inquired. "Was that the girl you were with?" Alex nodded distractedly as she opened the book.

"Was that your girlfriend?" Was the curious question of the small girl in Alex's lap.

The question hung in the air. "Huh?"

"Was that your girlfriend?" The little girl innocently repeated.

"What makes you think that?" Alex asked cautiously. What kind of kid was this?

"I dunno." The little girl adorably replied, leafing through the storybook. "But the way you were looking at her, and the way you were holding her."

Alex reached the depths of her memory and brain. Had she been holding Mitchie a certain way, looking at her a certain way? All she had really done was throw an arm around Mitchie's shoulder while they were waiting for her name to be called and Mitchie had snuggled into her. Routine stuff, they did it all the time, especially after fights.

"You just looked so happy." The little girl added.

Alex said nothing. Girlfriend?

Alex had never had a girlfriend. She'd had _girls_. A smirk crossed her mind as she remembered all those good times. But never a girlfriend.

There's was too much commitment involved with those things, and Alex didn't want to commit herself to something that exclusive, especially when Alex knew she could have so much more.

Which led Alex to think, usually by now, if Alex didn't get the girl to do those…good things…at least once, she would move on. No use wasting talent on somebody who wasn't going to appreciate it.

But Mitchie was a little different, and Alex couldn't quite place why. Maybe it was because Alex viewed Mitchie as a genuine friend. Maybe. No, yeah. That had to be it.

There was no other explanation for why _the_ Alex Russo would be hanging out with a girl who wasn't putting out.

"It's the same look my daddy gives my mommy." The little girl giggled, snapping Alex back to reality. "But my mommy and daddy aren't boyfriend and girlfriend. They're this grown up thing called married."

Again Alex said nothing.

"Are you and your girlfriend gonna get married?"

Alex's mouth had never been so dry. "Um…uh…it's a little more complicated than that."

"Oh right." The little girl added. "You have to test the names." Alex gave the girl a strange look. "You know? Test the first and last names…to make sure they fit together when they change and don't sound weird. Duh!" The little girl huffed before adding. "My big sister told me all about it…it's like a law or something."

Alex nodded dumbly, thinking of Mitchie and what it would sound like to carry her last name.

"Mitchie Russo." Alex tasted the name on her tongue. It kinda had a ring to it.

--

When Mitchie walked out of the doctors office and into the waiting area, she was completely surprised to see Alex with little girl on her lap and storybook being read. She walked towards the adorable scene.

"Aw, hi cutie." Mitchie smirked to the little girl once Alex had finished reading. The little girl smirked back. "I'm sorry, but now that you're done, I'm gonna have to take Alex from you."

The little girl frowned for a second. "Oh okay…I guess I should be getting back to my Nana anyways." The girl jumped off Alex's lap and wondered back to her grandmother. Mitchie was intrigued as she saw Alex almost protectively watch her go.

Mitchie smiled. "I see you made a little friend."

Alex just shrugged as she got up and wrapped an arm around Mitchie's shoulder leading the two of them out.

When they passed the little girl she excitedly called out "Bye Alex!" and then as if remembering an afterthought shouted, "Oh and bye future Mrs. Russo!"

Mitchie had no idea what to make out of _that_. From the corner of her eye though, Mitchie could see Alex's mouth twisting just slightly into a smile. _Odd_, Mitchie thought as the two entered Alex's car.

--

**A/N**: Reviews are always appreciated :]

Also what did you guys think of the deleted scene? I know Alex is a little more sensitive in this one, but we all know she is inside :P


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N**: Hi there :] lol so it's been awhile since I last updated a real chapter. A lot has happened.. spain won the world cup, I turned eighteen (eeep!) and I graduated high school (double eeep!). lol but since its summer I'm hoping to crank out as many chapters as possible before I'm off for university in the fall. Haha so hopefully you'll enjoy :]

Also.. a little warning, this chapters a little darker.

* * *

_Tap_.

_Tap_.

_Tap_.

I stirred a little in my bed. My eyes still closed. What was that noise?

_Tap_.

_Tap_.

There it was again. Why wouldn't it stop? Couldn't it see that I was sleeping?

_Tap_. _Tap_.

It continued and I almost sighed in frustration. But then I heard something different, only slightly. A muffled voice, as if calling from far away: _"Mitchie"_.

My eyes opened instantly. I _knew_ that voice. I threw the covers off me and quickly got out of bed, in search of it.

My room was illuminated in a slight early morning glow; the light coming from a crack in the curtains of my balcony window.

The balcony.

I rushed towards it and flung the curtains open. Instantly, the glow of morning flooded the room. I reached for the door handles to the balcony doors and opened them.

And the first thing I heard was…

"FINALLY!"

I looked down and saw none other than Alex Russo with a stone in her hand and an annoyed expression on her face.

I would have laughed, but the look on her face advised me not too.

"Do you know how long I've been out here?" She yelled at me from the ground. Now I couldn't help it, I laughed. Of all the times Alex and I have hung out, it has _always_ been me waiting for her. And oh, do I wait, I don't even know how I have the patience with her sometimes. It was just a little funny now that the tables had turned.

"You can stop that and let me in now." My grin widened, but I did as she said. I told her to meet me at the front as I sneakily made it through the house to unlock the door.

Once she was safely in we made it back up to my room. She immediately collapsed on my bed.

"Half an hour." She huffed. "I was out there for half an hour throwing rocks at your stupid balcony window."

I glanced at the clock. It read '6:00 am' in red digitalized letters. I turned back to Alex who was still lying on bed like it was the most comfortable thing in the world. Wait. What?

"Alex why on earth are you here this early!" I didn't even know she _knew_ there was a six am, let alone get up that early and come to my house.

"Yeah I know, shocking right." Alex stated sarcastically. "But today was a special day…" She trailed off as if she expected me to know what she meant.

I didn't.

"Come on Mitchie think. What day is today? It only comes once a year…"

I gave her an odd look, but decided to humour her anyways. "Well it's August…" She motioned her hand as if to say 'go on'. "And as I recall, yesterday was the 19th….so that must mean today's the 20th."

August 20.

Oh.

"My birthday." The words flowed out of my mouth without me even meaning to say them.

"Bingo." Alex added sarcastically from my bed. But she quickly softened. "But seriously…Happy birthday Mitchie."

I blushed. I don't even know why. But the look Alex was giving me when she gave me my birthday greeting…I…I can't even explain it. I've never seen Alex like that before.

"T-thanks Alex." I replied back with a smile. "But that still doesn't explain why you're here so early."

She gave a shy grin. "Well you know, it's your birthday… and I dunno…. I knew I couldn't really buy you a good present or anything…so I thought I could do something a little more personal and um, for some reason it felt important to me to say 'happy birthday' to you… so I wanted that to be special. But then I didn't really think there were a lot of ways to say 'happy birthday', so I decided I wanted to be the first one to say it… And I didn't know what time you're parents like, woke up or whatever, so I figured the earlier the better..."

I could feel a smile growing on my face. "Awww Alex!" I squealed slightly at her uncharacteristic ramblings. "That's so sweet!"

"Yeah, yeah." Alex waved her hand to swat away my thanks, but I could tell she was pleased. Maybe underneath all that attitude, a sensitive Alex was just waiting to come out.

"So I think I deserve some kind of monetary reward for being just the greatest person ever on your birthday." I rolled my eyes. Then again – maybe not.

I ignored Alex's comment while she suppressed a yawned. I guess this waking up early thing wasn't working out so well for her. I felt myself involuntary yawn too. I guess it wasn't working out so well for me either.

"Alex," I yawned. "Maybe we both should get some more sleep." I heard a muffled sound from the bed, which I figured was her way of saying 'yes'.

I smiled slightly as I clambered into my bed and pulled the covers over the both of us. I instinctively curled into her and the warmth of her body overcame mine.

_We have matching heart beats_, that was my last thought as I drifted into sleep.

xx

I awoke with the feeling of a warm body pressed against me and an arm slug loosely around my waist. I could feel warm breath behind me.

I opened my eyes slightly. It was my birthday, I remembered that suddenly. This warmth, this had to be the greatest gift. I turned my head to see Alex snoozing obliviously next to me. It was an odd sight, but so peaceful.

And then I heard noises.

I could hear a ruffling from behind my bedroom door; hushed voices whispering in the hall. But who could it be? I glanced at the digital clock: 9:00 am. Hm…that would mean my parents were up…that would mean…

Oh no.

"Alex wake up!" I hurriedly whispered as I shook the lazy girl awake in panic.

"Huh?" She groggily replied.

"Wake up! Wake up!" I basically rolled Alex off my mattress and pushed her off the bed.

Alex landed on her feet, now completely awake, and gave me a strange look. "Mitchie what's going o– ?"

"Just get in the closet!" I interrupted and pointed the closet door.

Alex rolled her eyes impatiently. "Okay, okay. Sheesh." She entered my closet and shut it quickly.

Just in time too.

My mahogany bedroom door suddenly barged open. "Mitchie your awake!" My mom exclaimed as she and my father entered the room.

I gave an awkward laugh. "Yeah…"

My mom looked disappointed. "Aw, honey, we wanted to wake you up. It's tradition on your birthday."

I rolled my eyes slightly, but smiled. My mom was so corny.

"So…" My dad walked towards me and sat on my bed. "The big seventeen." I grinned despite myself. "That's a big age, sweetie. But remember, you're always gonna be my little girl."

Even my mom rolled her eyes at that one. "Regardless," my dad continued, "we do know that as a teenage girl you want some independence." He paused as if searching for the right words. "So we decided to give you a gift that was age appropriate."

I was confused but nodded.

My father winked. "Sweetie, why don't you run downstairs and look outside?"

Again, I was confused, but followed my dad's orders. I quickly slipped out of my room and wandered into my living room. I pulled back the curtains and…

OH MY GOD!

I rushed outside and screamed. And screamed. And screamed.

A brand new convertible lay in the driveway with a bright red bow plastered across the windshield.

And…it was mine.

I could hear footsteps behind me. My father was suddenly in my line of sight handing me a new set of keys. "Happy birthday, sweetie." He smiled lovingly at me.

"Dad…oh my gosh…dad." I paused to catch my breath. "Dad this is amazing."

He smiled. "It took a little convincing on your mother's part, but eventually I swayed her. Besides, nothings too good for my little girl."

I hugged him intensely. "I'm glad you like it sweetie." He beamed at me. "I got to get to work now, but don't go destroying this car the first day out just because I'm not here to supervise." He joked. I nodded and he kissed me goodbye before hopping into his own car. My mother soon followed suit.

After waving both parents goodbye, I rushed back up to my room and collapsed on my bed. This was amazing.

"_Ahem_." I turned towards the source. Alex was poking her head out of my closet. "Can I come out now?" She asked clearly annoyed. I grinned. She came out without waiting for my response.

"So what'd ya get?" She plopped down next to me on the bed.

The smile was still on my face as I held up the keys. Alex's jaw dropped.

"No way." I just nodded dumbly.

"This is perfect!" She yelled suddenly.

"I know right." I responded with a lazy smile. Wait. What?

"Now we can go to that party tonight!"

"Huh?" I was so confused.

"Remember that party in Brooklyn I was telling you about?" I vaguely remembered something about one of her friends having a party. "Well now we can go because you can drive us. Oh this is so great. I don't even have to watch my drinks now, 'cause you're driving."

"Wait a minute." I backpedalled a bit. "It's _my_ birthday, and you want _me_ to drive _you_ around to some lame party at some person's house I don't know with my brand new car?"

She nodded as if it were strange for me to object. "Obviously."

"Uh no."

"Whaaaat?" I really was not pleased. "Come on Mitchie. I haven't gotten drunk since I met you 'cause all the parties we go to I have to drive you home."

As _if_ she was using that as an excuse.

"Pleeeeease, Mitch." Alex whined.

I shook my head annoyed. "What does it matter anyway? Justin told me you used to drive drunk home from parties all the time."

She looked genuinely surprised. "He told you that?"

"Yup. We were discussing how ignorant and stupid you can be some times. Really, Alex? Driving drunk. I expected better."

She was silent for a minute. "I know. But I don't do that anymore. I haven't in a long time."

Now I was surprised. It really didn't seem like Alex was lying, maybe Justin was wrong. My voice softened. "Really? Why?"

"Because I know you don't like it."

xx

Alex somehow persuaded me to drive her to the stupid party. But I guess in exchange she was borderline polite the whole day. When we snuggled on my couch to watch movies she actually let me pick a romantic comedy (but not with out loudly complaining) and then after as I was making us lunch, Alex actually thanked me for making her food. Bizarre.

I've never seen Alex like that before. And don't get me wrong, I definitely liked it. It was just weird.

So I guess then, I should have expected it when we got to the party and Alex went straight to the tequila. She treated me amazingly for a day only to ditch me for the night. I lost track after her tenth or eleventh shot. I honestly couldn't understand how she was still conscious, if that was me, I would be long gone.

It was the typical high school party; the kind I was used to back in California. The music was loud and modern and the alcohol freely accessible. I could hear the music ricocheting of the walls. There were tons of people there; wall-to-wall was packed with lust filled teenagers. Some of them I recognized from other parties or from Alex's introductions throughout the summer, some, no most, I didn't.

"Mitchie!" I looked up from the couch I was sitting on to see Alex get up from the keg and stumble toward me. I could smell the alcohol in her breath. "I want you to meet somebody."

She pulled me up and placed a free hand on my waist as we walked to whoever it was I was going to meet. I tried to peel her hands off me, but I was holding a (non-alcoholic) drink in one hand and Alex was somehow already completely wasted so no matter how many times I politely asked her to move her hands off me, drunk Alex wouldn't listen.

"TJ, Mark, Alicia!" Alex stopped us in front of three teenagers around our age. I recognized those names as some of her friends from school. "This is her." She lazily pointed to me with her free hand. "This is Mitchie, my girlfriend."

I almost choked on the water I was drinking.

What did she just say? Oh my God. Oh my God. She just called me her…her… Oh God, I was so confused.

By the looks on Mark, TJ, and Alicia, I wasn't the only one either. They were all visibly surprised.

"Wow," The one who I guessed was Mark remarked. He opened and closed his mouth several times before beginning his next sentence. "I'm.. I'm shocked, but… but I'm happy for you."

"Thank man." Alex slurred. "Isn't she so fine too? Look at that ass!"

Okay, I know Alex was drunk, but did she suddenly forget I was right here? "Ahem." I cleared my throat. I did not like getting objectified right in my face.

"Oh sorry, babe." Alex corrected herself. "I know you don't like swears. I meant to say, look at that butt!"

I just shook me head. Mark and TJ snickered. The TJ kid not-so-subtly even whispered "Whipped!"

My best friend scoffed. "At least my parents don't control my every move. You're the whipped one." Alex retorted.

"I'll show _you_ whipped!" TJ huffed defensively. Wow, what a douche.

Alex just rolled her eyes. "Kay, babe, I'm gonna get another drink." She turned to me. "But I'll see you in a bit." She turned as if to kiss me but she was so drunk she missed my face completely. Then she finally let go of my waist and went in search of consumable alcohol.

"Wow," Alicia commented. "I don't know how you did it…" She trailed off. "But you tamed Alex Russo…" Her gaze travelled to where Alex was already downing another shot. "Well…sorta. But honestly, I thought it could never be done." Eyes wide, I just stared at her. "Congrats," she sincerely saluted me.

I was completely dazed. And Alex's drunk escapades didn't help either. The entire night she was all over me. If it wasn't my waist, it was my shoulder, or my hand. She even tried to slap my butt once, but thankfully her hand-eye coordination was severely impaired and she ended up hitting a lamp instead.

From person to person to person she introduced me as her "girlfriend" and everyone I met was caught completely off guard. I knew that Alex was a player, but apparently for Alex to actually be in a committed relationship was like a sign of the apocalypse for these people.

I was able to correct most people after Alex's introduction to me and explain that we really were just friends, but the shocked expressions on their faces remained in place.

"Babe." I heard the same voice that had been calling me that all night behind me and the faint smell of alcohol. I turned and indeed Alex was standing there with a lazy smile on her face. It looked as if she was sobering up.

"Uh…hi Alex."

"I'm sorry."

"For what?" I asked. Getting drunk? Saying I'm your girlfriend? Leaving me alone all night?

"I haven't seen you at all tonight." I guess it was the latter. "But I'll make it up to you." I rose an eyebrow at her. "We can dance." She grabbed me by the hand and led me to the living room where teenagers were grinding to the music of the latest manufactured hip-hop music.

"Alex…" I began as she came behind me and placed her hands around my waist.

"It's just dancing, Mitchie. I promise. Nothing more…" I nodded but I swear I heard her whisper "…for now."

We relaxed into the beat. And for three or four songs I honestly forgot that the whole party was talking about how Alex Russo was finally in a relationship. Because it was just me and her and the music.

The music changed suddenly into a slow, hauntingly familiar song: _When You Look Me In The Eyes_.

I turned around and wrapped my arms around my best friend's neck. Alex grinned.

"Why are you smiling?" I asked curiously. "You hate this song."

"Opinions change." She responded coolly.

"Really?" I challenged with a giggle. "How?"

"I have a particular affiliation with this song now, that's all." She bent closer to me to explain further, our faces mere inches apart. "This song played the day I met you."

That shut me up.

xx

At around midnight, I told Alex I need some air and wandered up to the deserted upper floor of the house. I needed some time to think. It was almost too much. It was my birthday after all. God, what a birthday. Of all the days, this couldn't have happened at least tomorrow.

I opened an unlocked door and hid in an empty, dark bedroom. I sat there for a few minutes, just enjoying the quiet, when I suddenly heard a buzzing sound coming from my purse.

I flipped open my cell phone. "Happy birthday Mitchie!" I heard Harper scream on the phone. I smiled. It was great to hear my friend's voice, even if its owner was two continents away. "So tell me how've you been?"

"Well.." and before I knew it, I was spilling to Harper everything that had happened tonight.

"Wow." Harper commented after I had told my story. "That is certainly something." There was a pregnant pause on the line. "You must really be important to her. She's never called _anyone_ her girlfriend before."

That confused me a little. "What do you mean? Justin's told me she's had tons of girls."

"That key word is 'girls', Mitchie. Yeah, Alex has had tons of girls. But she's never gone out with any of them. All she's had is fuck buddies," I winced at her choice of words. "But never a girlfriend. For her to say that about you is actually pretty serious...even if she was drunk."

"But what does it mean?" I asked, almost desperate.

Harper paused again. "I don't know." That wasn't the answer I was looking for. "But remember, she can't say you're her girlfriend if you guys aren't actually going out. You have a say in this too."

Yeah, I certainly did. I bade my goodbyes to Harper and travelled back down to the party with my newfound information. That party was even wilder and I could smell the imprint of weed in the air. I almost gagged, great. I quickly made my way out to the patio so I could get some fresh air.

If I squinted, I could almost see the stars.

"What's a pretty girl like you doing out here all alone?" I turned a saw a handsome dark haired boy walking towards me.

"The party's just a little too wild for me." I answered honestly.

"Aw, well, I can't help you there." He smiled at me. "But I can make it so we can have a quiet party out here." His voice dripped with a New York accent.

I looked around at the empty patio. I could hear the thump of the party inside, but out here it was almost peaceful. Why not? "Sure." I responded softly. He walked towards me. I could suddenly smell a dangerous concentration of alcohol in his breath.

"A drink?" He asked holding up a red cup.

"Oh um..no thanks. I don't drink."

He rose an eyebrow at me. "Really? Hm." He got closer, his voice a little darker. "Are you sure? I think you're really gonna like it."

I stepped back, alarmed. "No really. It's okay."

His expression was stoich. "I don't think you understand." He grabbed my face with his free hand. "You're gonna drink this willingly or I'm gonna pour it down your throat." I whimpered against his hold. "Now open up."

My lips were tightly sealed.

"Ughhh!" The dark-haired boy groaned in extreme frustration. "Fine bitch. I was gonna give you the kindness of not remembering this. But I guess since you want too…"

He swiftly dropped the drink. I could here it's contents gulping out of the cup, and suddenly with both hands unrestricted, he brought my face to his in a sloppy kiss. I winced into his one-sided movement and shivered slightly.

I tried fighting back. I kicked and struggled but he had the advantage. He was taller and he kept anticipating my moves. He overpowered me to the ground and bent towards my lips.

I closed my eyes as he continued to assault my face. I wasn't stupid. I knew what was going to happen.

He grabbed my throat, forcing my eyes open. His eyes were so dark. "I bet you wished you took that drink now." I struggled to breathe, the movements in my chest erratic. I just wanted him to let go.

Let go. Let go. But no matter how many times I silently pleaded, I could still feel his sticky breath on my neck, my face. I could feel his rough hands grabbing my abdomen.

Let go…

And suddenly…he did.

In a rush of movement, my assailant went from on top of me to forcibly on the pavement ground. A blur of raven hair pushing him off me and then easily switching to punches.

I was left there, my breathing still inconsistent as I saw the scene unfold. In the heat of the moment I couldn't see who saved me, but now that I squinted I could make out…Ale-

"What the hell, Russo?" The boy yelled as he got up. Alex pushed herself off the ground and looked ready for a round two.

"_Really_? You're asking me what the hell." Alex screamed back at the boy, angrier then I've ever seen her. "What the fuck, Dean?" She quickly swung another punch at the boy. "Stay away from my girl! If you _ever_ touch her again, I swear to God I'll fucking kill you!"

Alex was pissed. I could practically see the venom in her eyes.

The boy, Dean, stepped back a little. "Whoa, whoa, Russo." He paused to regain his breath. "I-I didn't know she was your girl." He took a few steps back.

"Well now you know!" Alex retorted spitefully. "So back the fuck away!" He took more than a few steps back.

"Russo, calm down. I'm sorry, I didn't know. I won't happen again."

"Fuck you Dean! It shouldn't matter if she's my girl or not. You shouldn't be doing that shit to anyone you fucking scumbag." Alex took a long breath. "Now get the hell out of here!"

He didn't need to be told twice.

Alex rushed over to me. "God I'm so stupid!" I heard her say as if from far off. I couldn't process her words. I heard them, but my brain was barely registering what had just happened, let alone Alex. "How could I have left you alone? There are so many creeps here I don't know…and creeps I do." She turned to me. "Mitchie…are you okay?"

I nodded slightly. I still couldn't believe that every parent's worse nightmare just barely escaped me. I looked up to Alex's genuinely worried face. I couldn't believe she did that…for me.

"Kay, I think you've had enough of this stupid party. I should get you home." Alex slowly helped me up. I soon as I stood I felt like my legs would give way, but she wrapped a protective arm around my waist and held me close. "I'm not gonna let go." She was almost reassuring herself. "I'm never gonna let that happen again."

I just nodded as we walked away from the raging party inside the house.

xx

My parents were asleep when I pulled into my driveway. Alex was still buzzed, so I couldn't drive her home and have her parents see so I told her she could spend the night. And besides, even if I didn't want to admit it, I was still a little shaken from the night's events. It wouldn't hurt to have the girl who saved me with me for the night.

We swiftly and quietly made it to my room just as we had that morning. And the result was very much the same. We both ended up on the same bed and I was pressed against my best friend with her arms protectively around me in a very similar fashion.

Except it was different.

There was something subconscious. Like I couldn't name it but it was present nonetheless. A warmth that invaded my body when Alex held me.

That's how I fell asleep.

xx

I woke up with a smile. And with my mom calling my name. But I let the smile stay gracefully on my lips for a few seconds before I went to see what my mother wanted. I snuck a glance at my sleeping buddy. She was still sleeping…innocence lapsing on her face. She was beautiful.

I quietly got out of bed and made my way to the stairs. "What is it mom?" I half-yelled into the house.

"You've got a visitor!"

A what? My mind was still on sleep mode. But as I rounded the corner I heard a voice…that voice. I could recognize it anywhere. And I had, everywhere. "I'm sorry Mrs. Torres. I guess I shouldn't have come so early. I really wanted to come yesterday, but you know how it is… I could barely get the time to come today."

"Oh it's quite alright dear, I'm sure Mitchie will be thrilled to see you anyway." My mom responded with familiar warmth.

No… it couldn't be? I was running. Running toward the voice. And when I finally made it to the head of the stairs and could see who was at my front door, I could barely believe it.

He was the same: same skinny build, same straight jet black hair, same familiar grin. But he was here. He looked up suddenly and the grin donned his face. "Mitchie."

I ran down the stairs, disregarding all safety and leapt into his embrace. I couldn't believe it. He was here. "_Shane_!" I squealed as I wrapped my arms around his neck. He wrapped his arms around my waist.

There was noise behind me, but I didn't care. I heard a groggy voice at the top of the stairs. "Mitchie where are y- ?" And then the voice gasped. I didn't have to turn around to know it was Alex.

* * *

**A/N**: Reviews are always appreciated :]

lol and sorry for the long chapter 0.0


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